


Attached to My Burdens

by PassionateFangirl



Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Prime, Transformers: Rescue Bots
Genre: AU, Bisexual Protagonist, F/F, Use of Spanish, drug usage
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-05
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:40:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 35
Words: 57,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25078525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PassionateFangirl/pseuds/PassionateFangirl
Summary: Raf's overprotective older sister Mar ends up on an unplanned car ride to discover that she is not alone in the universe.Good news: some of these beings don't want to kill her or her brother.Bad news: most of them do.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 21





	1. Hermana Mayor

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger Warning: Use of marijuana.

The last name Esquivel meant The House Beyond the Lime Trees.

It's ironic, then, that Maria-Alejandra's family grew lemon trees in the back.

Maria-Alejandra, or rather just Mar, was the 4th child born to the Esquivels. Her two elder brothers Leo and Mark were both 17 and 18 respectively, while her elder sister Sofia (Leo's twin, actually) was also 17. Mal herself was 16, then her younger sister Pilar was 14, and little Raf was only 12.

Mar was overprotective towards Raf. She knew very well that Sofia would be watching over her and then Pilar (once she was born), but when Rafael came into the world Mar quickly moved in to be his main big sister. Pilar didn't care much for a new brother, and Sofia was tired out by the two girls by that time, so Mar had little Raf all to herself. She wasn't the best big sister, not by far, but she was certainly the most protective and doting.

Sure, she was a little too anxious for one little brother's safety, but to be fair her parents had so many other kids to worry about that they often didn't notice Raf existed. He was, "the forgotten child", you could say. So Mar worried about Raf in her parents' place. Naturally, worrying would stress her out. So she broke a few rules and escaped.

It was now 4:30. In her room, Mar lit the end of a cannabis joint and brought it to her lips. If it wasn't for this little haven in the attic, it probably would have taken her much longer to stop being so anxious about Raf leaving the house to go play on his own. She took a puff of the joint and let her mind grow numb. She loved this. Strewn around the bed she laid in were colorful blankets and her stash of joints, lighters, and a single bong for special occasions. She promised herself to never smoke tobacco, or use cocaine, or even drink alcohol outside of Church, but weed was another story.

She'd get high, and just...stop worrying.

In the back of her mind, Mar knew this was unsafe. It wasn't healthy. What kind of sister was she? But at the moment she didn't care, instead letting the green plant's fumes fill her lungs. She just let herself go free.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but she woke from her haze and saw a text on her phone.

_La casa es un disturbio en este momento. ¿Puedes ir a recoger a Raf? gracias cariño_

She sighed. She was happy to, but sometimes her parents' lack of caring for Raf themselves irritated her. She cleaned her little session up, hid everything under the floorboards, and went to her car to go pick up Raf from his after-school activities.

...

When she pulled up to the school that stuffed practically everyone that wasn't a high school honors student inside, the first thing Mar saw was Raf stepping into a black-and-yellow Urbana 500, with a teen boy behind him, almost ushering him to clamor inside.

"RAF!" Mar kicked her door open and ran for her little brother. She pushed aside the kid that was trying to kidnap her brother and pulled him away from the car. "Raf, are you okay? That kid didn't give you anything, did he?"

"What? No, no, Mar, I'm fine."

"Raf, I need you to stand behind me, I'm calling the cops." Mar pulled her phone out. Raf reached for her hand.

"No! No, he didn't do anything! He's innocent!" Her brother pleaded.

The teen slowly sat up from where he was knocked to the pavement. "You thought...you thought I was kidnapping him, oh geez, I'm." He stood up quickly. "I am so sorry. Listen, I was not kidnapping him. This is all a misunderstanding. In fact, I was trying to keep him from getting into the car!" His voice trembled when he said "car" for some reason.

"You sure that's true?" Mar asked, pointing at him with her phone.

"I bet all my savings on it. Let me not go to jail, please."

Mar turned to Raf. 

"He's telling the truth, I promise." Raf said. Mar sighed.

"Alright, fine." She stared at the car. There was no driver in it. This didn't faze her.

"The car, I found a car that wasn't being used anymore, and made a self-driving app for it. I was about to try it out!" Raf explained, pushing past his sister and getting in the passenger seat.

"You found a brand-new Urbana 500 owned by nobody and made...it drive itself?"

"Y-yep!" Raf stammered. The teen was slowly walking away.

"Let's save tech like that for when we get home." Mar stared at the car, admiring it's beauty. Screw her crappy dented Camaro, this was where it was at. "Raf, wait here." She eyed the teen getting on a well-polished blue motorbike and grabbed her stuff from her car-a purse, tissues, her favorite book on cars, and a few other belongings. She went back to Raf, closed his door, and got in the driver's seat.

"Hey, sis..." Raf looked at the wheel nervously. "I'm not sure it's a good idea to, drive this."

"Stop worrying about me, Raf, I'll be fine." She placed her purse in the backseat. The car made a strange buzzing sound. Okay, now she could see why it was decommissioned. "Let's just go home-"

The seatbelts suddenly flew over Mar and Raf, and the car started driving down the road.

"RAF! What the he-!" She stopped herself from cursing in front of Raf. "Is this your tech?" Mar yelled at her brother while panicking, trying to grab the wheel and stomping on the brake. The car buzzed at her again, in an almost irritated tone. Raf looked at the wheel.

"It's okay, she's my sister. She's just really overprotective. Sorry." Raf turned to his sister. "No, this isn't me. I lied about the self-driving thing!"

"Then who's driving this?!"

"...Itself."

"Be more specific Raf!" She noticed he wasn't freaking out in the slightest, and it worried her.

"Listen, I'm gonna sound crazy, but this car literally has a mind of it's own. It can, transform, too, and it wants to take us to it's-"

The car buzzed again, the beeps now more chittered and warped together.

"Oh, you're a he. Sorry. HE wants to take us to his base, or home. He's kinda supposed to be a secret!"

"I'm sorry!?"

"Mar." Raf smiled giddily. "He's a car that can transform into a robot. Don't freak out!"

"Tell that to me five minutes ago!" Mar continued to try and tear the seatbelt from her body. It only tightened. More buzzing sounds emitted from the wheel.

"Mar, please stop moving around and pulling at that. It's really uncomfortable for him." Raf chided his sister.

"What am I on?" Mar said to herself. "Did I...Did I smoke to much?"

"Smoke?" Raf cocked his head to the side quizzically.

"Shi-Forget what I said. Just-give me a moment to process all this!"

The car suddenly slowed, and stopped on the side of the canyon road outside the city. It buzzed quietly.

"He said he's sorry, he didn't know you'd be this panicked."

Mar clenched the seat's sides. This had to be some...dream. She must have fallen asleep during her session. It was the only explanation. Deep inside she knew that this was real, but she refused to accept it.

"Ok...let's go then. Raf, tell me everything."


	2. Meet the Machines

Raf told Mar everything. Every bit. From when he saw the robots fighting, and how they transformed, all the way up to now. The teenager from before, named Jack, actually sounded like a nice, albeit awkward, guy. Mar believed it, but at the same time didn't. It was just a dream. She had lucid dreams before. It wasn't new. Although, they were not as real as this one seemed.

Sooner or later, a huge mountain of rock stood before them. The car drove too fast for Mar's pleasure, heading straight for the rocky mountainside, and just before it crashed into the cliff, a piece of the rock slid down revealing a metal door. The door opened in front of them. Driving up a path that was straight out of a Bond movie, the car slowly slowed down and entered a vast room, ceilings as tall as the rock itself. What looked like strange artwork statues were actually machines, moving with human grace. They had faces and limbs, and parts of them glowed a gentle blue. One was quite big in stature, his body made of giant metal workings and colored an army green. From his plating on the chest...he could very well transform into a big SUV. Another was more lean, but still a little on the large side, red and white dancing across his metal plates. He seemed square, almost. And those medical decals on his shoulders? An ambulance he was, for sure.

So these were the "transforming robots" Raf was talking about? Who built them? How did they even function?

Mar was curious to see what the Urbana could transform into. Once the car stopped, she stepped out carefully, eying the robots. A sound like a motorcycle echoed behind her into the chasm, and she turned to find the teen from before and a girl with colorful clothes getting off. The bike suddenly convulsed slightly, and it changed-no, transformed-into a different shape. A beautiful, feminine warrior appeared from the mass of metal that was once a small, blue motorcycle. And it all happened in only a second. Mar couldn't explain how it happened.

Mar tried to hide her blush at the feminine machine.

The car did the same. She saw her stuff fall out of his shoulders. He looked like a slightly toned robot, with eyes constantly swirling in their sockets and digits that moved intricately. So Raf was right-they really could transform back and forth. They struck Mar as profoundly beautiful. She wished to herself this wasn't a dream.

But looking at the size of their feet and how easily they could squash them all with a single step, she was happy again it wasn't real.

"Raf...are they...gonna hurt us?"

"No. They're good guys. He even apologized for stepping on my car." Raf pointed to the black and yellow car, no, robot, and he tilted his head to the side and gave a small wave, beeping and chattering. "He says its nice to meet us." Mar nervously waved back.

"I thought there were two."

The ambulance robot spoke, making Mar jump. She thought they all talking in a robotic sound like Mr. Urbana. The motorcycle put a slender hand on a metal hip. "Haven't you heard? Humans multiply." The way she said "human" was almost like they were two completely different species. The thought terrified Mar. She'd seen The Terminator, and what rogue robots could do.

The young girl who arrived with Jack ran up to the biggest of the group, the green muscled car. She started bombing him with questions, and-yes-Mar could see visible discomfort on his robotic face. So intricate.

This was the best part, so Mar expected to be aroused from her weed-induced sleep.

"Raf...this is great and all, but I'm probably gonna wake up." She said, bringing a hand to her arm and pinching herself. Nothing happened. She tried again, confused.

"Wake up? Uh," He shook his head. "This isn't a dream, Mal, this is really real!" Raf reached up and shook her shoulder, motioning to the room. "Mar, there are really giant robots that turn into vehicles! You're not dreaming, trust me."

"So, if I'm not dreaming..."

While Mar was busy deciding if she was awake or not, Raf stopped trying to argue with her and took the chance to make small talk with the giant robots. "Uh, excuse me. I have a question. If you're robots, who made you?"

The ambulance scoffed loudly. "Puuuuuh-LEASE."

Loud steps made the ground shake. She turned to see a robot that was bigger than the rest. Red white and blue marked up his color scheme, and he resembled a truck, Mar noting the exhaust pipes and large windows scattered across his body. He looked down. "We are Autonomous Robotic Organisms from the planet Cybertron. Also known as Autobots."

Did he say organism? Did he say planet?! As in space!?

"Why are you here?" Jack asked the truck.

"To protect your planet from the Decepticons."

Protect...?

She couldn’t lie to herself anymore. She finally accepted it. She wasn't dreaming. No way could any dream be this intricate, or feel so true, anyway.

They were _real_.

She was now transfixed on this machine, speaking to her. Mar couldn’t speak or move. He continued to answer questions.

"Okay." Said Jack. "Why are they here?"

The Autobot took a knee and leaned down, his blue eyes glowing with concern and what also seemed to be curiosity. "A fair question, Jack. In part, they are here because our planet is uninhabitable. Ravaged by centuries of civil war. "

Raf piped up. "Why were you fighting a war?"

"For most, over control of our world supply of energon. The fuel and life-blood of all Autobots and Decepticons alike. The combat was fierce and endured for centuries. In the begining I fought alongside one who I considered a brother. But in war, ideals can be corrupted. And it was thus that Megatron lost his way. "

What he said was beautiful and Mar continued to stand still.

The young girl with the colorful outfit groaned. "Is there gonna be a quiz?" She said with bored amusement.

Jack, now taking the lead for the group much to Mar's irritation, asked one more question. "So what is 'Megatron'-or any of this at all have to do with us?"

"Megatron has not been seen or heard from in sometime. But if his return is imminent as I fear, it could be a catastrophic. And since you know know of our existence, I fear that as of last night, the Decepticons know of yours."

Mar finally got something out. "You. Aliens?" She squeaked.

"To your people...yes." The Autobot answered.

The poor teen's eyes fluttered, and she sat down. This was just a little too much. Raf comforted his sister but putting a hand on her head and patting it.

"Since your knowledge of us is without question impossible to pass off as something else, I believe we should introduce ourselves. I am Optimus Prime." He motioned to the motorcycle. "This is our spy, Arcee."

"Pleasure." She said with slight disdain.

"And behind you are Bumblebee, our scout." He pointed to the Urbana 500, and he made a chittering noise. Raf waved back. "Ratchet, our field medic." The ambulance grumbled something. "And Bulkhead. Our melee." Optimus pointed to the SUV, and he shuffled a little awkwardly, staring at Miko with caution.

"Well, you already know Raf and I." Jack began. "This is...uh, Miko, I think? She's in my class." He waved with the back of his hand at the girl, and she smiled cheekily. "And that little ball of anxiety is...uh...Raf's sister...?"

"Yes, my older sister. Maria-Alejandra, but please call her Mar." Raf finished for Jack. "Sorry, she just needs to take this all in. I'm sure she likes you guys, really!"

And with that said and done, Mar finally passed out.

...

It was only for a few minutes. Everything was really dark and muffled during that time.

When she woke, Ratchet was speaking with Optimus.

"Optimus." He was saying. “With all due respect, the human children are in as much danger here as anywhere!"

"Children?" Jack responded, offended. 

"They have no protective shell!" Ratchet went on with his tangent. "If they get underfoot they will go! Squish!" To make a point, his foot moved slightly, and Mar remembered she had to make sure her little brother wasn't squished. Her instincts went on overload, and she rushed with adrenaline.

"Sh-Raf!" She got up, and pulled him away and behind her. "Listen, Mr. Prime!" She called out. If anyone was going to negotiate safety with robots and tiny human beans, it would be Mar.

Optimus looked at her.

"I'm sorry if I sound...untrusting. That's because I am."

"You have every right to be." Optimus responded.

"Listen-I'm grateful for what you did, saving my brother. But can we trust you? Can we trust that they'll be safe? Are you on our side? Are-"

"Calm down, calm down." Optimus chided gently. "I can assure you, you're in good hands."

"But-Raf cover your ears-those Decepticons could decide to fuck around and try and attack us-or you may step somewhere you didn't mean to. I mean, mistakes happen!" Mar was going toe to toe with an alien being twice her size. She expected him to argue right back to her, and her body was ready for the challenge.

Instead, he simply knelt down and looked her in the eye. "Maria, understand we have been here for much longer than you may think. It is not the first time we have encountered your kind. Some mistakes have been made in the past, I am afraid. But we learn, and I promise no harm will come to any of you. Not while we still stand." He gave her a small smile, just barely. "Will you trust us?"

Mar considered. The way he just proposed that was much like a father would. Even if they were aliens, they clearly had the capacity to care and the heart to understand fear. She took a deep breath. "Okay. Optimus, I'm trusting you. All-" She wavered at Ratchet frowning at them in the corner. "Of you."

"Thank you, Maria." For some reason, Mar didn't find it irritating that he called her that name.

Suddenly, green lights began to fill the room, flickering on and off and accompanied by a soft alarm. The Autobots quickly gathered to what looked like the main computer, and Ratchet opened an image.

"What's that?" Jack asked.

Bumblebee buzzed.

"Proximity sensor. Someone's up top." Raf translated. He looked at Mar, a grin creeping onto his lips. "I heard what you said about the Decepticons."

"Don't you dare repeat it, Rafael." Mar growled.

"It's Agent Fowler." Ratchet said, groaning. The image displayed on the screen showed a helicopter and a well-dressed man getting out.

"So when you said we weren't your first encounter...?" Jack began.

"I was not bluffing. Special Agent Fowler is our designated liason to the outside world, as he tends to visit only when there are issues. It may be best if you do not meet him at this time." Mar took his cue and went to hide somewhere, the rest of the gang following her. Just as they were out of sight, the sound of an elevator ding echoed. Somebody walked on metal, and then started speaking.

"Seven wrecks, thirty four fender benders, a three hour traffic jam, and on particular note,"

 _Geez, this guy sounds fun at parties,_ Mar thought.

"Numerous reports of a speeding motorcycle of unknown making and a black-and-yellow custom muscle car! So, anything you care to get off your tin chest, _Prime_?"

"We have the situation under control, Agent Fowler." Optimus assured him. Mar noticed Ratchet and Bulkhead "casually" walking away from Fowler's area of speaking. They've clearly danced like this before.

"They're back, aren't they?"

"If you are referring to the Decepticons, I have doubts that they ever left. Your planet is much too valuable."

Valuable? What could Earth have?

"Than it's time to wake up the Pentagon." Fowler stated. From where Mar was, she could see Optimus' eyes narrow, and he leaned down slightly.

"Hear me, Agent Fowler." Optimus was not gentle like he was before. "We are your best, possibly your only defense against the Decepticon threat." He was clearly holding back a lot of irritation. But his voice had become a deep growl. Aura upon aura of power seemed to radiate from him. His fingers clenched slightly at his sides. Mal remembered that this was a being capable of unspeakable destruction, and everyone had their limits. He was making sure Fowler knew what bear he was poking.

Yet, Fowler didn't even flinch. "Says _you_."

"Hey, fleshy!" Bulkhead, on the other hand, did nothing to stop all his anger from being released into his voice. "Did anyone get splattered on that freeway? Team Prime knows when to use force." He tore a piece of equipment from it's station with ease. "And how much to use." He snapped the metal in half like a toothpick.

"Bulkhead, I _needed_ that!" Ratchet was suddenly at Bulkhead's right side, his hands grabbing the air in frustration.

"Enough!" Optimus reminded his fellow Autobots not to get so worked up. "Military involvement will only result in catastrophe. Perhaps _you_ can condone widespread human casualties, Agent Fowler. I, however, cannot." He admitted, once again turning to Fowler.

"Then do us both a favor and handle this, Prime! Under the radar." Fowler was walking again now, back to the elevator. "Or I will." Then he was gone.

Mar and the others revealed themselves from their hiding place. "That was...concerning." Jack said. "Are you on good terms?"

"Hmmph." Ratchet grumbled.

"Sometimes, sometimes not. It's hard to tell with him, honestly." Arcee said. Then lowering her voice, she added "He does tend to make Optimus more irritable than usual during their discussions."

Mar needed a joint.

Raf needed to look around more.

Miko needed answers to her questions.

Jack needed to take it easy.

Point is, they all decided to just unwind.


	3. Acute Sensations

Mar sat next to a railing of a high-rise, and consulted images on her phone and pictures in her book on cars, staring at Bulkhead. Her eyes kept flitting from him to the book, and she'd turn a page occasionally.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

Mar didn't answer. She continued to read through and stare at pictures of trucks and large automobiles. Finally, she slapped the pages of the book in triumph. "Ha!" Pointing at Bulkhead, she said aloud her answer. "I was wrong after all. You're not a 2011 Ford Explorer, you're a Lamborghini LM002 SUV manufactured...in, uh, 1993. I guess you've been here a while."

"...What?"

"When you turn into a car, th-that's the name of it. You turn into a Lamborghini. Do you know how hard it is for people to get those here?"

"I have no clue what that is, but...cool?" This was _really_ awkward for him. "You, uh, know a lot about Earth machinery?."

"Yeah. I plan to manufacture technology in the future. I have a special interest in cars. When somebody makes the first safe flying car, oh, that's gonna be my name on the plate. _M.A. Esquivel_ , flying car creator."

"I'm sorry to inform you that you're a little _late_ on that." Ratchet called out, slightly mocking. "We already have many alt-modes using fl-"

"Eh, knock it off, Ratchet." Bulkhead chided. "Let the girl follow her dream."

"Yeah! Let 'er dream!" Miko pitched in.

Ratchet let out a quiet noise of irritation and went back to calibrating the system computer. Suddenly, a little red dot popped up in the middle of the biggest screen. "Blasted Earth tech! Cliffjumper's signal popped back online."

"Who's Cliffjumper?" Miko asked. Most of the team stiffened.

Optimus came over, concerned. "How is that possible?"

"It isn't. Just. Another bug! The system is chock-full of them." Ratchet rolled his optics.

"If there's any chance Cliff's alive..." Arcee was standing, full attention given to the signal flashing on the screen. She looked at Optimus with a silent question.

He answered it. "Ratchet, prepare sickbay. We may need it." The medic nodded with confirmation. He pressed a button, and a part of the cavern flickered on with lights. He went to the other side of the high-rise the kids were standing on, and pulled away a covering. A lever not little enough for an elephant sat there, ready to be pulled. Ratchet happily obliged, and the tunnel that they had arrived here in glowed with an electric blue light.

Suddenly, greens and pinks and aquas swirled around, like some sort of fantasy portal, and a gateway appeared. Mar dropped her book and stared.

"Hey! What can we do?" Miko yelled out.

"Remain with Ratchet." Optimus suggested.

Miko groaned in annoyance, leaning back with exaggeration. Ratchet tried to argue, but just ended up groaning with annoyance himself.

"Autobots, roll out!" Optimus suddenly morphed into a truck, the others following suite. A sight to behold. They went into the light, and were suddenly gone.

"What just happened?" Jack exclaimed.

Ratchet sighed, exasperation practically dripping from his metal tongue. "I transported them to the designated coordinates via the Ground Bridge." His voice had a ' _this-is-common-knowledge-do-i-have-to-explain-everything-to-you-primitive-peoples_ ' tone in it.

"What's a 'ground bridge'?" Raf asked, curious.

"A scaled down version of Space Bridge technology." He huffed. "Since we don't currently possess the means or the energon required for intergalactic travel..."

"You're stuck here. On Earth."

"With the likes of you, yes." Ratchet confirmed Jack's statement. "But I constructed the Ground Bridge to enable travel from here to anywhere on your planet." He seemed proud of himself for that achievement. Well, who wouldn't be?

Raf stared at the intricate designs of the technology in the portal. "Does it work for humans?"

"Naturally."

 _He's losing his usual mean tone there,_ Mar thought to herself.

Miko pointed at the Bridge. "You mean," she pointed to herself, "I could just shoot on over and visit my parents in Tokyo?

"Within moments. In fact allow me to send you there immediately," he leaned down, a grin on his face. "All four of you."

_Never mind, there it is again._

"Watch it, Ratchet." Miko actually stood up slightly and stuck her face in his, making Ratchet recoil.

He rolled his eyes and went to finish preparing sickbay. Mar climbed down the ladder and followed him. Once he saw her, he rolled his optics for the 50th time. "What. Do you want?"

"I just want to watch. This sort of thing fascinates me."

"Whatever keeps you quiet." He muttered, and went back to setting things out. After a moment, he spoke again. "Don't stand that close, you smell like cannabis. It's disgusting."

"...What?"

"I said, step back."

"How do you know what-"

"Just because I'm don't like you people doesn't mean your planet doesn't interest me a little! I mean, your planet has millions of metallic sub-types, but only one main type of metal? And it's inorganic? Impossible. So I studied all of Earth's plants. Gave me something to do. Perhaps even make fuel out of if we somehow run out of Energon to power our machines." He stared at her, with a dead expression. "Now shut up."

Oh geez, _did_ Mar smell like marijuana? She hoped that these creatures just had acute senses. She didn't need Raf to discover her...secrets.

She looked back to the high-rise, and saw Raf chatting with the others. It didn't look like he heard anything. Good.

Mar continued to watch Ratchet work. The way his blue eyes twirled and twitched, his fingers dancing along the tools. Wires hooking up, advanced items calibrating and flickering to life. It was so beautiful. So mesmerizing. Unfortunately, he was soon done, and went to the computer to check for anything from the team.

"What is this anyway?" Miko asked him as he walked by, having climbed down the ladder. She stood next to a strange looking machine, her fingers outstretched and about to press a button.

"Broken, don't touch." He responded curtly. "Don't touch that either."

"So, anything here we _can_ touch?" Jack said, with sarcasm.

Ratchet responded with his signature "puughffft". The computer didn't seem to find it likable, responding with an error message.

"How come you guys are using human computers?" Raf asked. He was still on the high-rise, and had pulled his laptop out of his schoolbag. He was hooking it up to a human power outlet. _Oh great, now Mar was starting to sound like an alien in her thoughts._

"It certainly isn't by choice! It was handed down from previous tenants when we inherited this former missile silo. I make modifications as I see fit." More errors popped up. Ratchet was about to blow a gasket.

"I think I can fix that." Raf said, typing something in on his computer.

"Reeally?!" Ratchet almost laughed. "You know this is _complex_ technology, don't you? I mean it isn't a child's toy."

"Now try."

At once, the errors were wiped clean, and the screens were restored. Ratchet looked at Raf with utter surprise.

Mar wasted no time clamoring up the ladder and hugging him. "Look at you! Fixing technology for aliens! I'm so proud!"

Raf could only muffle "Get off me! I can't breathe!"

Embarrassing Raf was one of Mar's favorite activities.

A voice filled with fear sparked through the computer. "Ratchet! Bridge us back!" It was Optimus. Ratchet hurried to the lever, ready to pull. "Use the arrival coordinates...now!" He yanked it, and a blur of Autobots rolled in. A blue explosion was right behind them, but thankfully cut off by the closing of the bridge. Optimus was almost signed by it, transforming into his robot form and skidding on the ground. The entire silo shook.

"Cutting it a bit close." Ratchet reminded the leader, his voice gentle. "How about Cliffjumper?"

Everyone looked down in remorse. Whoever Cliffjumper was, he wasn't around anymore.

Miko, unfortunately didn't grab the memo, instead focusing on the battle and aftermath. "What was that explosion? Was there a fight? Can we come with next time?" She practically jumped around, pleading.

Arcee came into view. "Look-!" She growled, clearly uncomfortable with how Miko was handling the situation.

Jack, fortunately, saved Miko from the Motorcycle's wrath. "He-hey, Miko, let's go see what the bots hide in their sock drawers." He grabbed her by the shoulders and led her away, the girl sarcastically commenting on his poor excuse to leave under her breath.

Mar tapped Raf's shoulder. "We should go too." Her brother nodded, shutting down his computer and shuffling away to another part of the silo.

Whatever this was, it was not something Mar needed to intrude on.


	4. Delphinium Blooming

Despite Raf often being forgotten, Mar knew that her parents would soon find out he was missing. It was 10:06, after all.

Mar took this time to draw out her cell phone to call her mother and come up with an excuse (something she was good at, since she needed her "breaks" from time to time), but found that her WiFi was not working. She tried connecting to another source, but nothing came up. She shook it, hoping it was a bug.

"You too, huh?" Jack asked her, holding his flip-phone in the air next to her. She shrugged. "Ya think the Autobots have a WiFi password?"

"Let's find out." Jack reached over the railing a bit, waving with his phone. "Hey, Optimus. Sorry to bug, but...no bars."

"A security precaution." He explained. "The silo walls isolate all radiowaves."

Jack's eyes narrowed in worry. "Well, if I don't call my mom like _now_ I'm pretty sure cops will be out looking for me."

Optimus leaned down, and in dead seriousness, asked "Have you broken a law?"

Mar had to hold her laugh back.

"A curfew. It's after ten p.m."

"I better get home too, or I'll be grounded for a year." Raf added. Mar nodded. "Mamá's punishments are...nasty."

"Earth customs. I hadn't considered." Optimus raised an eyebrow in thought. "But the issue of your safety remains." In an instant, he nodded to himself, and turned to his companions. "Bulkhead!" 

The SUV nodded towards his leader.

"Accompany Miko home."

"Awesome! My host parents will freak!" Miko put her hands to her face, pure delight written over it.

"And maintain covert surveillance in vehicle form." Optimus added.

Bulkhead turned to Miko. "Curbside duty, got it." He seemed to remind her with the way he said it. And thus, Miko let out a moan of despair.

"Bumblebee! You'll watch over Raf and Maria."

The Urbana looked over, and seemed to smile at the two. Mar was actually happy this was the car chosen to bring them home. Raf smiled back at Bee.

"Ratchet-"

"Busy!" The medic lied.

"-Arcee. You'll accompany Jack." Optimus finished.

She took one look at Jack (who only looked back awkwardly) and put a hand to her head, leaning to the side. "Ooh, still dizzy..." She was clearly faking it.

"You're fine! Says your physician." Ratchet ushered. She rolled her eyes but went to him anyway, with a sigh.

The two buckled themselves into Bee, Raf in the passenger seat and Mar in the driver's, and watched the night sky ride by as they drove home. Raf fell asleep quickly.

Mar smiled and ran a thumb over his forehead, remembering that he always liked it when she did that at night. Bumblebee buzzed gently.

"I'm sorry. I can't understand you." She replied.

Something came up on a screen above the radiator. It was a picture, showing...a picture of them at that moment, and a question mark.

"...Oh, our relationship?"

The car buzzed once. That was probably yes.

"He's my little brother. I care for him when nobody else does. I'd give my life and two legs for him to be happy."

The word "OK" and a smiley face came up on the screen.

"I'm glad you understand that sort of thing too." Mar smiled. "That is what you mean, right?"

The car buzzed once. That was, in fact, Bee's way of saying yes.

It wasn't long before they arrived home, a modest house near the place Raf said he first met Bee. The jerking from pulling into the driveway woke him up. "We home?"

"Yeah." Mar grabbed her purse, which managed to survive falling out of Bee back at the silo, and got out with Raf. She turned to the Autobot. "Thank you, for saving my brother."

The little symbol on the hood of the car, which resembled a stoic robot's face, blinked and buzzed. "He says it was no problem." Raf translated.

God must have been having a good day, because her parents didn't even blink when the two arrived home. Mar bid goodnight to Raf, and then went upstairs to the attic to sleep. Her older brothers had left for college, and Sofia moved in with her boyfriend. This left just her, Pauline, and Raf. Mar hated sharing rooms, always wanting her own space, and quickly gave her room to Pauline so she could sleep alone in the attic-and not be disturbed when she smoked. It wasn't that bad. Maybe a little hot, but a fan always helped.

Mar settled in her bed, the sheets rustling. Turning off the lights, she went to sleep.

That night, she dreamed of a junkyard, and she felt nothing. In her hand, she held a budded larkspur. It slowly bloomed in her palm.

...

The day was...strange.

It was a day to simply spend bonding. Raf wanted to go off by himself (like any kid would want), and Mar made sure that Bumblebee would do all he could to protect her baby brother. Jack left to ride with Arcee, and whatever Miko was planning with her guardian, it wasn't safe.

So that left Mar and Ratchet.

Neither one of them were too happy about that.

After sharing dirty looks with each other for a few moments, Mar left to explore the silo. Long hallways of steel and the smell of rusty metal were everywhere. She loved it. Peeking into little closets and shoving her way through heavy broken doors, Mar didn't find anything too interesting. Or deadly. Or even safe.

Then a room with a huge door bigger than Optimus greeted her at the end of a hall. Curious, Mar reached up and pressed a large red button on the side of the wall, and the door slowly opened.

Inside was a collection of blue cubes.

Mar was in awe, staring at the colors. It was the same electric blue that colored the Autobots' eyes. She walked in, a strange smell hitting her. She couldn't place it. It was...something. Floral, maybe? The cubes glowed, gentle and eerie.

"Maria."

She turned to find Optimus at the doorway. He motioned for her to come out.

"I'm not supposed to be here, am I?"

"No." He responded. It wasn't curt or rude, just blunt.

"I'm very sorry. I'll remember that for the future." Maria walked out and watched as he closed the door with his own bare hands. "Can I ask what's in there?"

"Our last supply of Energon."

Mar remembered it was essential to them, and considered the blue light from under the door. "And if you run out..."

"We will be unable to function, yes."

"Optimus, is there anything you can do?"

He turned to her. "Unless we are able to find more Energon here, no."

Mar looked down in sorrow. This was the same thing as food shortage in their culture. How long did they have? "I should have been smarter. Again, I'm really sorry for intruding..."

"No harm was done." Optimus said. "You learned from your mistake. You're fine."

Mar nodded, smiling, then frowned again. "Wait, how would you find any more Energon here on Earth? I don't exactly-"

Their conversation was interrupted by a sudden banging sound, and somebody screaming "I NEEDED THAT!"

Optimus quickly ran to the source, Mar in tow. To be honest, Optimus did leave her in the dust, but he was 50x bigger than she was. When she arrived, something was blasted dead on the ground, and squished by a large foot. Ratchet pointed at the carcass. "And stay broken!" He looked at Mar. "Oh, it's you."

"What happened here?"

"During Bulkhead's little demonstration yesterday, I had to throw out some of my equipment. But then it came back, alive and moving as if it were one of us!" He kicked the scraps of metal lying on the ground. "Pile of trash..." He muttered.

Mar walked over to the heap. Whatever it was, it certainly wasn't coming back. She gently reached out. 

"Don't touch the damn thing!" Ratchet yelled. Optimus gave him a questionable look in response to his cursing.

"It's fine, Ratchet-yeesh..." Mar tore what seemed like a leg from the corpse. As she did, sparks flew and purple liquid dripped down.

"Ok, seriously, little hands _off_!" Ratchet ushered her away, Mar dropping the metal leg from her hand. "This is the same substance I found on Arcee yesterday...strange..." Optimus had grabbed a canister, and Ratchet quickly put the carcass and all traces of the purple liquid inside with a scalpel. "Perhaps...this was responsible for raising it up?"

"If the residue Arcee found on Cliffjumper brought your broken equipment to life, it would stand to reason that the very same substance brought Cliffjumper back from the dead."

There was that name again, Cliffjumper. Back from the dead, though? Is that what happened yesterday, with the explosion?

"That would account for his life signal inexplicably coming back online, but Dark Energon? It's so scarce seems to be virtually non-existent. What would it be doing on Earth?"

Dark Energon? What the-? Mar decided to just let the two talk about their findings before she butted in.

"It must have been transported. By Megatron, no less."

"For what purpose?"

"To conquer this planet...by raising an army of the undead."

Mar stiffened. She was actually quite terrified of zombies, unlike the author of this book.

"Well, Megatron would need to break quite a few toaster ovens. I mean, where on this world would he find that many cybertronian dead?" Ratchet put a servo to his chin, contemplating the information.

"Uh, 'scuse me. What is Dark Energon?" Mar piped up. The two shared a look of doubt on wether to tell her.

But they were saved by the bell, or rather the revving of wheels. Jack, Miko, and Raf had returned from their experiences. They were all laughing with one another, although poor Bulkhead's was interrupted by finding a gutter inside his chassis. Miko laughed nervously. "Sorry! Must have left that in the back seat." Mar quickly ran to Raf and messed with his hair, much to his annoyance.

Optimus took note that everyone was here. "Autobots, prepare to-" He stopped in front of the humans in the silo complex.

"Roll out?" Arcee finished for him.

"...Remain here. Ratchet, you'll come with me. Arcee, we'll be outside communications range for some time so I'm putting you in charge."

"Dude, you're biggest." Miko whispered to Bulkhead. "You should be the boss!"

"Err, he never picks me." The SUV responded. Mar felt kind of bad for him, so she gave him a little smile of reassurance.

"Optimus. With all due respect," Arcee followed her leader to the ground bridge entrance. "Plain bodyguard is one thing; babysitting's another."

Jack mumbled something, crossing his arms in offense.

"Besides, Ratchet hasn't been in the fields since the war."

"My pistons may be rusting, but my hearing is sharp as ever!" The ambulance retorted.

"For the moment it's only reconnaissance." Optimus assured her.

"And why do I hear an edge in your voice?" She spat.

"Arcee, much has changed in the last 24 hours, and we all need to adapt. Ratchet! Bridge us out!" He clearly had enough of her attitude, and the two 'bots quickly left. Arcee tapped her foot and sighed.

"OK, chief. What's on the activities list?" Jack asked the motorcycle.

"I'm going on patrol." She rolled her eyes and left, a tinge of sass in her stepping.

"But Optimus told us to stay." Bulkhead reminded her.

"When you are in charge you can call the shots." She said, walking past him. "Bee! With me!" The poor car looked at the Esquivel siblings and beeped sadly, but followed Arcee anyway. "Bulkhead, you're in charge." That was her last order before the two left.

Bulkhead stared at his feet and coughed. "So, uh, what's on the activities list?"

Mar's ears were met with a loud squeal of electronics, and she moved to find Miko plugging in her guitar to a speaker. "How about band practice?"

"But we are not a band." Raf interjected.

"Why so antisocial? Come on, Raf, do you play anything?" She smiled at him.

"Hmm...keyboard?" He took off his backpack and pulled out his laptop.

"Laptops and samples, good! Jack?"

"I, sometimes mess around on the harmonica." He admitted.

She gave him a face with zero fucks. "Do I look like I do country? Just cover yourself in fake blood and jump around screaming. Bulkhead! Percussion! We'll go for a big industrial sound."

The bot looked at Mar with question. She shrugged and pointed at Mar with the edge of her instrument. "Can you sing?"

"Yeah. Not in front of-"

"DIY, we are a band! You just need to learn the songs. This one's a ballad: 'My Fist, Your Face'." She strummed her guitar, and broke out into several chords at once, heavy rock blasting from the speakers. Everyone in the room covered their ears, even Bulkhead, the feedback squealing. Despite the terrible speakers, Mar had to admit that Miko was very talented when it came to music. But fortunately and unfortunately, the session came to an end when green lights flickered on and off in the room, accompanied by a loud buzzer. Bulkhead shushed Miko. 

"Come on! You can't handle raw power?" She said sarcastically, before noticing the alarm.

"Proximity sensor. Quick, hide!" Everyone ran behind Bulkhead's foot, since the room was quite bare.

"Prime!"

"Agent Fowler. Uh. He's not here. Nobody's here. Except me, of course."

"Wh-, where did he go? Wait, don't tell me, He's out pankacking a mini-mall! Now, I don't know what language you 'Bots speak on your planet-" Mar shut his voice out, noticing that Miko's guitar was still connected with the aux cord. She reached for it, and Miko pulled away, a strum echoing in the silo.

She suddenly realized what the problem was, and tried to unplug the chord without being seen. But Bulk kept moving, as did Agent Fowler, which made this difficult.

"-So, you tell Prime-" He stopped, noticing the wire and the speaker shaking on the ground with Bulk's foot. "Since when are you 'Bots, electric?"

The four of them exchanged looks, and saw no way out. One by one, they each revealed themselves. Fowler stared at them, wide-eyed. "Contact with civilians! Team Prime has really gone off rules this time. Wait, don't tell me! You are running a day-care center?"

Quickly, they made up terrible excuses.

"We are interns."

"Student interns."

"Earning extra credits in Mechanics-"

"Robotics!"

"OK Let's move!" Fowler went down the stairs of the high-rise and came toward the group. "I'm taking all three of you into federal custody. For your own protection."

Mar began to panic. _Oh shit oh no they're gonna find out that I have drugs and I'll be sent to jail no that can't happen I need to be a good person I can't let them see-_

Her thoughts were delayed by a large, green metal foot slamming into the ground in front of her. Bulkhead peered down at Fowler. "We are protecting them." He stated.

"Is that so? Well, maybe you can explain that to my superiors at the Pentagon!" Fowler came across a telephone in the wall, and almost tore the chord taking it from the holster.

"Don't use that phone! It's-" Bulkhead pressed a finger to the console, breaking it beyond repair. "Out of order."

Fowler's fists shook. "This isn't over, Bigfoot, not by a long shot!" He stomped up the stairs and left abruptly. Miko mouthed something mockingly.

"Hey sis, you ok? You look...pale." Raf said to Mar.

She looked at her hands, and saw they had gotten clammy. She took a deep breath. "I'm fine. Just...stupid government. That's all. I need to take a moment."

She left the main room.


	5. Not All There

_It's gonna be ok...just breathe..._

Mar was frantically pacing around. She felt anxious, scared. She. Needed. Drugs.

She was so lost in her own thoughts she barely noticed the loud noises emitting from the main computer.

"My ears!" Raf squealed.

"It's an S. O. S. ...From Fowler?" Bulkhead lingered over the controls before the signal suddenly shot offline. "...Location scan is incomplete. Oh well." He shrugged.

"Oh, well? Seriously?" Jack said, surprised at his statement.

"Fowler's a jerk!" Bulkhead explained.

"Whether you like the guy or not the Decepticons may have him!" Jack argued back.

"And Agent Fowler knows your location. Our location." Raf reminded Bulkhead.

Right. Shit. Mar had to be there for her brother, to protect him. Right now, she was the only family close by. She wasn't about to let him get snatched by Decepticons. Mar walked down the stairs of the high-rise and went to go join her friends on theirs.

"But we lost the transmission. Fowler could be anywhere." Bulkhead tried to throw the situation away, although he too knew the dire circumstances.

"Maybe I can narrow it down." Raf picked up his laptop and plugged it into the network, pulling up a program. "About five years ago the Government started microchipping their agents. You know, like owners do with pets." Everyone backed up once they heard his metaphor. "What? I saw it on TV." Raf rolled his eyes. "Anyway, if I can hack into the Fed's mainframe maybe I can pinpoint Fowler's coordinates."

Miko scoffed. "You know how to hack? But you're like two years old!"

Mar elbowed Miko.

"Twelve. And a quarter." In only ten minutes he had hacked and tracked him down. "Let's see...latitude 39.5, longitude 116.9."

_That's my Raf._

Bulkhead took one look at the coordinates and nodded. "OK, wait here." He started up the Ground-bridge and began to sprint into it.

"Hey, don't break up the band!!" Miko said sadly.

"Er-uh, M-no, Jack, you're in charge!" He turned and ran again, disappearing into the light.

"Guess we three have run out the place." Jack shrugged. "Miko? Miko?" All of a sudden, she was nowhere to be seen. Her guitar lay flat on the floor. Mar looked around frantically. "Shit." She cursed to herself. "There goes one. Mr. In Charge?"

"Bulkhead may have not even realized she'd followed him." Her brother worried aloud. "Miko hasn't seen the 'Cons in action like we have. She has no idea." Jack turned around in a circle, trying to think. Raf pointed to the computer. "Their destination is still locked in."

"No way! No!" Mar said. "It's too dangerous, Jack! I care about Miko, but I also want you alive too!"

Jack put his hand on her shoulders in a knighting gesture. "You're in charge!"

Mar threw her hands up in frustration. "Gh! I'm coming with you then!" Raf followed behind her. She quickly pushed him back. "Raf, no. You stay here."

"But I want to help!" He pleaded.

"Raf, if one of us is gonna get hurt out there, it's going to be me. I'm sorry, but please stay here."

"Fine. Then who's in charge?"

"You, I guess."

"Since I'm in charge, I say I can come too!" Raf crossed his arms.

Mar stared at her brother, knowing he quite clearly outsmarted her with a simple trap. She sighed. "Fine. But please, try not to die."

...

Going through that tunnel was so, so...out of this world.

Her molecules felt like they were simultaneously going to a million different places at once, and only the swirling motion kept her in one place. Once the 3 of them got out, Mar felt quite sick. _Hold it in you sorry excuse for a sister,_ she told herself. _You need to be strong. Find Miko._

"Are your bones vibrating?" Raf thought aloud.

_Ok. I'm gonna puke._

Mar leaned up against a rock, and she only stopped getting sick by being distracted by something else. It was a ship bigger than anything she'd ever seen in her life. With sharp spikes taller than the Eiffel Tower jutting out of it's gray armoring, she knew that was probably where all the fun was.

"You there!" A loud voice echoed across the canyon, and she saw 3 small purple lights pointed at them. She went in front of Raf.

"Yes?" She cried out. Maybe they would listen.

They opened fire instead, and a single shot went right past Mar's face. It didn't exactly hit her, but it was close enough she could feel the plasma raking across her skin. A large clump of her hair fell to the ground next to her. It was a fucking wake up call.

She grabbed her brother and ran to the side, hoping to find cover. Her prayers reached Heaven, or at least Bulkhead knew what she wanted, because he rode up in front of the blasts. "GET IN! NOW!" He barked, and the 3 wasted no time clamoring inside.

"Your ear." Jack commented. Mar touched the sizzling piece of her body, and was met with burnt fingers.

"The better to hear you with..." She mumbled, shaking her hand.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" Bulkhead cried out, the car shaking either from his worry or the rocky road.

"We were worried about Miko. Have you seen her?" Jack asked.

"What's she look like?" Miko said, popping up from the backseat. This prompted a scream from Mar.

Bulkhead stopped behind a rock, and his doors opened automatically. "Everyone out!" Jack was out first, and Mar quickly handed Raf over to him. "And this time, please, wait here?" Bulkhead added.

"Miko, come on." Mar urged her friend, about to slip out of the vehicle. She didn't budge, instead giving Mar a smile and a grin. Mar reached for her friend. "Miko, whatever you're thinking-!" Mar intended to pull her out of the car when suddenly the entire inside jolted. Parts moved around, squishing Mar in the back with Miko.

"THIS IS AWESOME!" Miko cried out.

Mar was now having second thoughts on considering Miko a "friend". Not to mention, Miko's face was pushed up against Mar's, and she felt very awkward. Was her hair always this soft? And...oh no.

Before Mar could dwell on her quite _definitely_ bisexual thoughts, the entire compartment jolted with an unseen force. The two girls held on to each other and screamed as it shook. They could hear the sounds of plasma firing and metal crushing into one another, but it was pitch-black in there. She heard Miko gag and throw up, thankfully not on her.

Finally, after what seemed like the longest 30 seconds of her life, she heard somebody yell "Miko?! Mar?!"

Mar rapped on the wall of the compartment.

Light poured into the room. Mar felt dizzy. She most definitely hit something. It didn't feel good. NOTHING FELT GOOD.

Miko climbed out of the compartment, which was actually the chest-piece of Bulk's chassis. He held out a hand for her to climb on, and set her down. "Mar, you in there too?"

Mar poked her head out, and promptly felt sick. She was helped out too, and the moment she touched ground, threw up. Speaking of which: "I heaved on your floor mats. Sorry." Miko admitted, and wiped her mouth. "Remind me never to do that again."

It was all fine and dandy until a Decepticon soldier ran by for a surprise attack, barely nicking Mar in the head. She wasn't knocked out, per say, but nothing felt right. So, so...dizzy. Her ears rang.

Miko grabbed Mar and lifted her onto her shoulder. "Come on!" The two girls slowly shuffled their way out of the fight and ducked. Mar heard several muffled smashes, then something big and metal being ripped out. Then an echo as the entire floor shook.

"You ok dude?" Miko asked. Mar shrugged.

In an instant she and Miko were scooped up by Bulkhead, and fell down some kind of corridor with him. Purple light illuminated the hallways.

"Miko, Mar, hold onto each other!"

"Excuse me?" Mar mumbled, adrenaline spiking a bit.

They did as told. Bulkhead then threw them to the floor, but at an angle so they would slide. They did just that, going underneath two Con soldiers, and stopped near a corner. Miko let go of Mar. "I'm gonna heave again."

"I think I have crush on you." Mar said in a daze.

Miko looked up, weary. "Huh?"

"Huh?"

The two were picked up again. And now face to face with Arcee's sleek form, her cannon ready to fire at them.

"Friendly!" She yelped.

"Hello!" Bulkhead said at the same time.

"Brought the humans, huh?" She said, looking at the two.

"You try getting them to stay behind." Bulkhead let them down. Mar tried to regain her footing. _Fucking FOCUS, Mar!_ She told herself, the headache from the head nick starting to set in. Raf went over to his sister.

"You're alive!" He hugged her. "I was so worried."

"Me too, me too." Mar stumbled from his sudden hug and her headache.

Arcee took command of the group again. "We need to find Fowler and get this kids out of here."

"He's in the brig." Jack and Raf said at the same time.

And a blur of Con soldiers burst into view. All three Autobots cocked their guns, and all four humans knelt behind them, watching.

This was gonna be one hell of a day. Then again, it already was.


	6. Dangerous, But!

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Jack screamed, and the three knelt in a little ball just as Bulkhead provided cover for them. It was not the smartest position, but nobody was thinking right.

The author thinks they should have stuck themselves up against a wall.

The author would like to write for Transformers Prime.

The author wants the show to come back.

The author remembered she needs to write about Mar and robots, not herself.

Alright, by now the group had cleaned out quite a few pathways. Arcee put a finger to her lips, and stuck her head in a dark, small room, her gun primed. "Clear." She said, and pointed to the four kids.. "Wait in here." She instructed.

Bumblebee buzzed in confusion.

"They're slowing us down and they're easy targets. They'll be alright in here, as long as they stay put." She explained. Mar wanted to say something, but she knew that Arcee was right. The three Autobots sprinted away, leaving the four of them in a silent, dim room.

"That, was intense." Miko said.

"Was?" Raf squeaked.

"It's your fault that we're stuck in this intensity!" Jack lashed out at her. "What were you thinking, Miko?"

"Did I ask you to follow me?" She spat.

"You wanted us to be a band. Doesn't that usually mean to play together?"

"Well, maybe I decided to go solo."

"Well, maybe I have some regard for your safety."

Mar put her hands up. "Guys..."

"Oh, I'm sorry, it's your name 'Optimus'? You can leave my protection to Bulkhead, thank you very much!"

Raf let out a small yell of anger. "Stop it! Both of you!" He screamed. He walked away towards a ledge in the room, leading down to some stairs, curling up beside it. Mar was at his side in seconds, the others following.

She put a hand to his head. "Raf, are you okay-?"

"I'm fine!" He yelled. "Mar, I can take care of myself. I can have my own emotions by myself. I'm not 7 anymore. Stop. Babying me!"

Taken aback, Mar scooted away from him.

Raf realized he made quite the outburst, and looked away. "S-sorry. I just can't take it anymore. I know you-"

"Raf, _I'm_ sorry. I should have known. You hacked into the Pentagon for goodness sake. You survived giant robot battles. ...I have been treating you like a baby. As your big sister, I should know when you're old enough. I guess..."

_I guess I've been so high all the time I haven't been paying attention as much._

"We're sorry too." Jack said, sitting by Mar. Miko sat next to him.

"None of us really cared about how any of us felt, I guess..." She said.

"Thank you." He said, the corner of his mouth coming up a bit.

"Hey, Raf, what do you make of that?" Mar pointed at a large screen seated in the room below the stairs. Raf leapt down the steps, and stared at the complex shapes and words.

"It's important. Really important." He nodded to himself. "We've got to get this to Optimus."

"How do you know it isn't just a recipe for space-nachos?" Miko joked. An image of Energon-blue nachos came up in Mar's head, and she bit back a laugh.

"I know math when I see it. And that is one serious equation." Raf ignored her attempt to make light of the situation.

"Can you download it?" Jack asked.

"I've got a flash drive. But I don't see anywhere to plug it in." Raf pulled off his backpack and dug around, searching for the item. "This tech is way alien." He dragged the flash drive out of the clutter and stared at the console.

Large metal footsteps interrupted the group. They belonged to a 10-foot tall Con.

"Move." Jack ushered the group to a hiding spot. Raf stopped in his tracks, and turned to get his backpack.

"I'll get it, you focus on space math." Mar pat his shoulder and hurried over to the black lump, zipping it up and dragging it with her. Unfortunately, it made quite a bit of noise, and the Decepticon looked over at her.

"Listen, sir, we can talk this out." Mar said. "There's no need for violence."

He armed his cannon. If Mar moved, she'd be blasted away. If she didn't, she'd be blasted away anyway. But if she moved, even to get a few more seconds of living, he might see her run in the direction of the others. She was trapped.

To her surprise and horror, Raf ran up to her and stood in front of her. "Stay away from my sister!" He yelled.

"Raf, get back!"

The vehicle fired, and the two jumped away. Raf's hair was now smoking a bit on the top. And so they ran from the shots of plasma.

"When I said I'd stop babying you, I didn't mean I'd let you get yourself killed like this!"

"It was a panicked reaction! I didn't know what else to do!"

"How about I keep treating you like a baby until we get off this nightmare ship of death, ok?"

"Miko, take a picture!" Jack was screaming across the room. He was now running towards the Esquivel siblings.

"Great idea!" She said, and took out her phone. "Hey you!" A white flash spread across the Con's face the second he turned to look at her, and he was very, very confused.

"Not of that! Of THAT!" Jack pleaded.

"Oh..." She muttered to herself. She took a picture of the screen.

The Decepticon looked slightly offended, and a little dazed. He cocked his gun.

"Go! Go! Go!" Jack pulled the siblings along, and Mar grabbed Mikos arm when they passed her. Into the purple-lit hallways they went, the nearest exit seeming like miles away to their tiny human selves. Mar heard the familiar powering up noise of the cannons behind her.

But lo and behold, a familiar green SUV honked into existence, his headlights tearing across the room and over the four. He smashed into the Con and practically rode his body like a surfboard across the flooring. Bumblebee parked next the the group, opening his door with an invitation.

"I told you to stay put!" Arcee scolded. Jack got onto her while the others rode in Bee. Mar sat in the back, but it didn't take her long to realize there was another guest with them.

"I like pie. Can we stop for pie?" Agent Fowler slurred, poking his head around the inside of the car.

"You found Fowler! Rock on!" Miko exclaimed, making horns with her hands.

The man leaned to one side and almost crushed Mar if she hadn't put her hands out to steady him. He was...heavy. And quite delirious.

...

Upon seeing Optimus and Ratchet alive and mostly uninjured, Mar felt a little better. Fowler was quickly put on a gurney to rest, and the rest of the Autobots discussed with each other what had happened. She was absolutely sure Ratchet did a double take once he saw her hair.

"Here, for your ear." Jack dabbed a cloth on her ear. Mar hissed at the contact.

"Shiii-ooot! That really hurts."

"You're aware that most of your skin is burnt off there, right?"

"...No, I was not, actually."

She (begrudgingly) let him bandage it up and gave him a smile. "Thanks, Jack."

"What happened to you guys anyway?" Miko asked Optimus.

Ratchet answered for her. "We engaged an army of undead cybertronian warriors."

"Zombies? You fought zombies, and I missed it?" Miko grumbled.

 _Zombies?!_ Mar's heart beat a little faster. She had hoped that answer was just a crazy suggestion.

"Bulkhead. You exercised extremely poor judgment in allowing the humans to accompany you." Optimus said solemnly to his teammate.

He took the blame. "It won't happen again, Optimus. I promise." He said, looking down.

"But it wasn't Bulkhead's fault." Miko interjected.

"Miko, please!" The SUV begged.

"And check it out. Recon!" She held open her phone, the picture on display.

Optimus had to squint at the picture. "Ratchet, have a look. It could be of importance to Megatron."

"Woah, Megatron's back?" Jack exclaimed. "That's really bad news, right?"

Ratchet leaned down and stared at the picture. "I...don't understand."

Miko looked at the phone screen and realized she had swiped it to the last photo by accident. "Oops! That's the 'Con who tried to blow Raf and Mar away. ...At least that's what he looked like before Bulkhead rearranged his grill!" She said, looking at her guardian proudly.

Mar decided to forget about her feelings for Miko at the moment.

She got up, walked right over to her, and gave her a nice slap.

Miko touched her cheek and stared at Mar, who was seething.

"My little brother was almost killed more times than I can count!" She yelled. "Do you honestly think this is some Saturday morning cartoon where shit happens but it always turns out A-OK?" She stomped the ground. "This isn't like that! Get it through your fucking head!"

"Mar, you've made-" Jack started to say, but she pulled away from his outstretched arm.

"No, Jack, I'm not done yet! Things like this are why I turn to mar-other things!" She let out a scream of frustration and climbed down the ladder, and went for a corner. She sat down and let herself burn with anger, and a desire to smoke something.

"Jack, putting you in harm's way was never our intent." Optimus was saying to him. "However. It is no longer the safety of you three that is at risk but the safety of all human kind. We will respect your decision if any of you wish to leave."

The Ground Bridge activated. "No point in long good-byes. Here's the door." Ratchet said absentmindedly.

"Come on, Raf." Jack said to the boy.

Raf looked at Bumblebee, and then his sister. "I'll be OK, Jack. I think I'm still needed here. I'll, uh. See you at school."

"Sure thing." He got down to the portal, shared a small word with Arcee, and left through the portal.

Little steps clanged down a ladder, and Raf sat next to his sister. "You ok, sis?"

"What in the world makes you think that?" She replied.

"Listen, Mar." He scooted closer. "I know you feel scared. I do too. But this could be so much bigger than us. I think we could be key in helping them."

"But what if we die. What if _you_ die?"

"I think we'd still be at the same risk even if we never met them." He said, and sighed. "We just need to be more careful, that's all."

"We were being careful. Then fucking Miko-"

"Yeah, that was really dangerous. But as scary as it was, it was also one of the most amazing experiences of my life. And just think; if we weren't there, Miko never could have taken a picture of the equation. And based on how heavily Ratchet is studying it," He motioned across the room. "I think it's vital to this war."

"What are you saying, Raf?"

"I'm saying I think it wasn't a coincidence that we met the Autobots. I think we all need each other. In more ways than one."

Something buzzed, and Bumblebee knelt down next to them. He chirped.

"He doesn't want us to go either."

Mar looked up the the scout. His eyes twirled majestically in their sockets, illuminated her face slightly. She sighed. "Optimus did promise he would protect us. And we _are_ still alive, so..." She let herself smile. "I don't really want to leave either, to be honest. I like these guys."

Bumblebee whirred and picked up Mar, nuzzling her to his face. She yelped, and Raf laughed at the situation. "You have no idea how happy he is to hear that!"


	7. Desperate Problems

Mar smoked a joint and slumped down in the seat of the old chair she sat in. She let herself go. After everything that had happened, she couldn't relax. She couldn't stop thinking about these either. All through the morning church service, she couldn't sit still.

She exhaled a cloud of smoke, numb to the world. A Decepticon could be right here with a gun pointed at her, and she wouldn't have cared. That should have been a warning sign to Mar, but again, she didn't care about that either.

She touched her newly done hairstyle. After yesterday's fiasco, she managed to convince her mom that her new do was because of a fire at a chemistry club she wanted to check out. She went to her older sister's apartment complex and she happily fixed it, having cut/shaved away the burnt part of her hair. The result was an epic side-mohawk.

After she finished her joint, Mar still felt...wrong. She didn't feel as relaxed as she usually did. She took another joint and was about to light it when she got a text from Raf:

_Bee's here and waiting! Come now!_

She texted him back:

_I'll be down in a few._

She took a look at the rolled up weed and did something she never would have done before.

When Mar first started smoking, she made sure there was not a trace in the house anyone could find. She hid it all in the most inconvientant places, and made extra precautions so nobody would know her secrets. She almost never smoked outside of her bedroom.

But now, things have changed. Mar might need a relaxer, and certain things came up that hindered her from going to her special haven. She may have to do it in secret, on the go.

Mar rolled the joint in a ripped piece of cloth, and tucked it in her jacket. She prayed nobody would smell it. Just in case, she picked a flower from a vase downstairs and stuck it in the same pocket, hoping it would cover up the smell.

It was an orange mock.

Anxious, Mar met up with Raf and Bee, and they drove off to the Autobot base. Once they arrived, she was greeted by Jack's return to the team and...Miko.

Miko gave her a friendly smile, and Mar didn't feel too angry at her anymore. She went over, quickly. "I'm sorry I slapped you yesterday. And yelled at you."

"It's ok. I...deserved it." She admitted.

"Autobots, prepare for departure." Optimus instructed his teammates. They all nodded.

"Where to?" Arcee asked, surprised by the sudden mission notice.

"The final frontier." Miko answered.

"Space? I thought they didn't have any way to get there." Jack asked.

"They don't, really." Raf affirmed.

Jack looked at Arcee. "Uh, be seeing ya?"

She gave him a genuine smile and a small nod.

Bumblebee knelt down and waved a goodbye to the two Esquivels. "Be careful, Bee." Raf told him. He buzzed nodded.

"Don't even think about following me." Bulkhead told Miko. She pouted, but did as told.

"Optimus, if you leave me stranded on a planet teaming with humans, I will never forgive you." Ratchet spoke, looking at the Prime.

"Until we meet again, old friend." Optimus responded, ignoring Ratchet's rude statement about humanity. "Autobots, roll out!" They each morphed into their beautiful alt modes, and drove away into space. A few moments later, a comm link popped up on the screens.

There was a lot of chatter between the machines. Mar managed to pick up on this:

" _It appears the Decepticons have sustained serious damage to their interstellar navigation system._ "

That was Optimus for sure.

" _Uh, that's my handiwork._ "

And Bulkhead.

" _Great job, Bulkhead._ " Optimus complimented. " _Without the dish, Megatron would be unable to aim the Space Bridge at Cybertron._ "

"Don't the Decepticons know where their own planet is?" Raf asked.

"Naturally." Ratchet scoffed. "But Cybertron is many light years away. To reach their target, their aim must be astronomically precise."

" _If Megatron went to the travel of rendezvousing with his Space Bridge, he must have an alternate targeting system. A remote one._ "

"Hmmph. From what I know of Earth's technology, I doubt there exists a single radio-telescope dish on this planet powerful enough to pinpoint Cybertron." Ratchet said.

Mar scoffed. "Puh-lease." She mocked. Raf was already searching up photos for the Karl G. Janksy VLA (Very Large Array) on the main human-sized computer.

"What about a whole bunch of linked radio-telescope dishes? Like the giant sized array in Texas?" He said.

"ZIP-de-apde-ap-shh! This is not child's play." Ratchet stopped him from doing any more.

" _Good thinking, Raf. Ratchet, have Agent Fowler alert the array staff to the security hazard._ " Optimus commed in.

Ratchet grumbled, and looked over to where Fowler lay.

"You, soldier! You outta uniform! Put on some pants!" Fowler sat up and yelled, before flopping back down.

"That may be a challenge." Ratchet concluded.

Meanwhile, Raf had begun his hack into the VLA. He bumped a fist on the desk. "I can't get past the array's firewalls. They're too thick." 

"You, actually think _you_ could keep the Decepticons out?" Ratchet said.

"I know you don't like us but give us a chance." Mar chided the ambulance.

Jack put his hands up, signaling for everyone to stop and listen to him. "W-wait, Raf, what if we could get you all the way in? Like 'inside-the-building' in?"

"I could log into their internal network on the other side of the firewall."

"Wait, like...we actually Bridge to the VLA?" Mar pondered. "That's crazy...but it might actually work."

" _The risk is too great, the Decepticons would be there. Perhaps even on sight._ " Commented Optimus.

"Optimus, with all due respect you said it yourself, this is bigger than the safety of three humans." Jack said to the Autobot leader.

"Yeah, if we let the Cons win, we are fried, along with everyone else on our planet." Miko pitched in.

"This is the whole reason I'm working with all of you, despite the risks." Mar finished.

" _Raf?_ "

"I wanna give it a shot." He finally decided.

...

"Security sure is lax on this place." Miko closed the door to one of the monitoring rooms.

Mar shrugged, her long hair falling over a shoulder. "Guess they don't have much to do here."

"I'm in." Raf announced. He made a small frown. "And so are the Decepticons." 

"What?!"

"How can you tell?"

"Schematics. With the same alien math we saw on their ship." He typed something in, plugged in the flash drive, and clicked a link with the mouse. "But this time, I can download it."

"It's gotta be the Space Bridge." Miko said.

Raf adjusted his glasses. "The Decepticons are syncing it to the dishes. But I can sync to them." He smirked.

Jack bit his lip. "Would they know?"

"Even if the Decepticons see that I'm in the system, they have no idea I'm in the house."

Mar rapped a finger against her knee. She really needed to go to the bathroom.

"I'll be right back. I gotta go." Mar headed for the door.

Jack grabbed her by the wrist. "What? No, Mar, what if somebody sees you?"

"Hey, I'm really quiet when I need to get somewhere. Besides, I saw one down the hall we walked through. It'll be ok."

_I'm probably so good at this cuz I sneak out to do drugs all the time..._

"...Fine. Be careful."

Mar found the restroom, and contemplated how people in movies and TV did their superhero work without basic human needs such as this. Afterwards, she was about to open the door to the monitor room and go back inside, when something outside made a noise. Like a loud clicking.

Mar stopped in her tracks. She turned, and heard something large moving. It was coming from the door down the hall. She did something very, very dumb, and followed the noise. With each step it grew louder.

She took the handle, turned it, and opened the door, leading to a room with a glass roof.

Which was broken.

Probably due to the huge Decepticon in the room, hacking also.

He turned to stare at her. His face was only a screen, and displayed the same imagery that Raf's computer did.

Mar closed the door slowly, locked it, and started walking away; only for something long and tentacle-like to burst through the door and grab her, twisting itself around her like a snake. On it's end were 4 little blue tendrils, squirming and grabbing at her face. Mar screamed bloody murder.

One of the tendrils brushed her face, and she heard voices-so many voices, all the same, that she screamed louder from the overload of information.

Í̵̬͛ ̴̖̈́K̸̡̪̔Ę̴̦̀̋Ȇ̵̛̫P̷̩̎̊͜ ̶̝̾S̴̘͌I̸̞͇͒Ĺ̴̳̱Ë̶̦̗͘Ñ̸̢̂T̶̢̊̈ ̵̗̅F̵̟͑̅O̸͖̤̿R̷̭̀̀ ̷̭̙͛̊M̷̦̒Ỵ̶͔̇̄ ̴͎͆͌L̴̝̘̊͝O̷̲͋͜R̷͍͂D̴̨̫͆̍  
̶͍̎  
̶̱̈́Ẇ̷̞̈A̵̘̱̍T̷͇͗͋C̵̗̓̔H̷͎͛̚ ̵̮̣͛͘Y̴̦̑O̷̞̦̿̾U̷̮͛̚ ̵̢͂Ḋ̵͙̩̀I̴͕̓È̴̤  
R̷̬͈̈́̐Ę̸̻̎̕P̶̭̼̃͒L̸̟͊Å̵̙̝͋Y̵̡̊ ̸͈̍R̴͉͓͝Ḛ̶̐P̵̧̱͆L̵̯̺̈̄A̵͖̤̕Ỳ̴̭̻͝ ̴̻͐̏R̵̜͠E̶̠͠P̴̬̅L̸͛̎ͅA̵̧̿͜͝Y̸̺͋  
I̴̮̓̑͜ ̸͐͜W̸̝̠̏́A̸̱̫̋N̵͖͚͘Ṱ̷͗ ̵̧̳̋̐Ṫ̴̝O̷̖̦̚ ̴̯̈S̷͎͕̊́P̴̰̈́Ȩ̸́͝A̸̜̚ͅK̶̂̚͜ ̸͕͙͌B̴̤̿͗Ȗ̸̖̠̀T̵̙̿ ̵͚̣̍Ḯ̵̥̘ ̸̙͑͆M̸̢̒̈́Ú̶͈S̴̀ͅṬ̴̦̀̚N̸̰̊'̴̖̾̍͜T̶̡͍̀  
̷̱̃  
Y̴̠̒Ǫ̷͍̈́͆Ǘ̴̟ ̶̭͒̉W̸̹̎͗Į̴̮͒L̸̯̼͠L̷̠̅ ̸̘̖̐Ṋ̴̇Ḛ̶̿V̴̿͜Ȩ̴̠͛Ṙ̴̡͆ ̶̗̪͝W̴̼͑̉İ̷̤̲̽N̸͚͉̿̚  
̴͈́  
 **̷̺̞̿̊Ŝ̴̘͒Ò̸̮͝U̵̢̗͐̂N̷̹͝D̸̗̼̊̒Ŵ̶͙̌A̸̠̘̐V̴̧͔͆͠Ẹ̵͚̓ ̴̟̓S̴̢̘̅̄U̶̡̔P̴̩̭̌̄É̶͙̖R̷̡̛I̴͍̜͆̈́O̴̺̼̊̾Ṙ̷̲,̸͚̂̉ ̴̮̐͜͝H̴̛̹U̶̠̤͘͘M̸̗͕̅À̸͓͔͝N̸̳̄͠S̵̩̊ ̷̭̏͝I̸͎͙̔N̴͖̍͘F̷͙̻́Ȩ̶̙̍R̶͍̎̅Ỉ̴͕̈́Ȏ̷̞R̷̂ͅ**

What was this thing? Was it even alive?

She burst through the door, therefore slamming into Jack, and then Miko, sending the three of them flying across the room.

"DON'T LET THE BLUE THINGS TOUCH YOU!" She screamed, as the tentacle-no, rather cable came for another grab.

"I got it! Let's go!" Raf said, holding up the hard rive and ducking under the huge purple cable that swung by him.

"How?!" Jack motioned to it. "It's blocking the hall!"

"Not for long!" Miko broke a glass containment unit on the wall and pulled out an axe. She threw it at the cable, and missed. It landed on the ground, stuck in the metal. The blue tendrils gushed over the handle, before picking up the sharp object. The claws on the end of it scraped the wood.

"YOU HANDED IT AN AXE?!" Jack yelled at Miko.

Just before it could do any damage, the cable suddenly darted out of the room, as if it was being pulled away by an unseen force. The four kids followed it, hoping to perhaps find the source of this enemy. All they found was an empty room, and a large shadow over them.

Miko looked up to find the faceless robot from before. She did the logical thing and snapped a photo of it.

The group was reflected in it's visor, and it too made a snapshot sound, almost like laughter. Then, the thing was gone.

"When it touched me with those blue things on the end of it, I could hear it's thoughts..." Mar explained her warning from before. "It was like listening to Hell. The point is...well, whatever it is, it's dangerous. We have to let the Autobots know if they don't already."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the basis for Mar's new hairstyle here: https://assets.rbl.ms/14473473/980x.jpg


	8. Blood Red

The axe had been thrusted into the floor, and cut the wire at the same time. The dishes were locked, and there was nothing else they could do. Why in the world did Mar go check out that door...why did she do something so obviously stupid?! She was smarter than this. Surely, she was.

And now Mar stood back in the silo, aggressively tapping her foot, wanting to bust out some marijuana and drug herself away. And of course, Dark Energon just got through the portal to Cybertron's undead. The Autobots were more likely not going to survive this ordeal, or at least without a few scratches on their paint.

" _Ratchet, we must destroy the Space Bridge._ " Optimus's voice came through the com links. Ratchet frowned, clearly not too fond of the idea. Optimus continued. " _There's enough live energon coursing through it to achieve detonation. But we lack the firepower to ignite it._ "

"If I knew how the Space Bridge was engineered, I might find a tactical way of accomplishing that feat." Ratchet answered with irritation dripping in his tone.

"Hmm...would schematics help?" Raf showed Ratchet his hard drive. He looked at it for a moment, and took a deep breath (however they may do that).

"Optimus, I must say the Space Bridge is our sole hope of ever returning to Cybertron." Hope seemed to flicker and die in his blue eyes. "Are you certain it's destruction is the only option?"

There was a pause.

" _I am afraid so._ "

"Then by all means, let us light our darkest hour." He raised his voice, ready to make his stand on Earth as the others made theirs in the stars.

"Autobots, take your positions, and follow Ratchet's lead. While I make my stand."

Raf hooked the hard drive into the computer, as the schematics for the space bridge booted up. Ratchet looked it over on his screen and nodded.

" _Ratchet, we're in position._ " Arcee's voice flickered over the radio.

"Arcee, pay close attention." Ratchet advised her.

At this moment, Mar realized that the fate of her planet being decimated or not by an army of robotic undead from space currently laid in the hands of an ambulance, a motorcycle, and her younger brother. That gentle leader, that huge softie, and that young scout, were fighting with their lives to keep Megatron from harming their planet any further. They may very well end up dying, their bodies lost in space. To be honest, that was probably going to happen.

This tipped it. Mar did something she would not be proud of later in life.

"Guys...I need to take a break. This is a little much." Mar told the others. Jack gave her a knowing nod. Agent Fowler was focused on the end of the world. She was good.

Mar quickly left for a random supply closet. She hurried inside and saw the room go dark when the doors closed again. She took out her lighter and lit her joint, bringing it to her mouth, but a sudden blue glow caught her attention.

A single, lone energon cube sat across from her. It's gentle light illuminated the closet. It sat there, unmoving, and pulsating. On top, it was cracked.

Mar wanted to touch it.

She walked over and carefully ran a hand (on an undamaged side) over it's smooth surface. Her hand left a light blue afterglow on it's texture, fading within moments. Mar found herself chuckling. It was beautiful. The Cybertronians ran on this stuff? Mar wondered what it tasted like. Electricity? Rock? The color blue?

Either way, it was astounding. She slowly ran her index finger down it's sharpened side, and was met with pain. She pulled away, clutching her finger, and held it over the cube to get a better look at it. Blood ran down her skin, and dripped onto the cracked top, seeping into the contents of the inside. Some droplets were a mix of her red blood and blue crystals. Slowly, it turned a gentle white, flowing with color, then began to fade into a hot pink. Her cut stopped gushing.

Mar ignored the phenomenon. She was tired. Using the pink cube as a night-light, she went back to her joint. Mar didn't notice the hot pink slowly turning into a red. She closed her eyes, drifting away to the smell of smoke. Nothing remained on her mind.

When she opened her eyes, she still sat in the supply closet, the remains of her smoking joint squashed next to her. The cube, meanwhile, had turned a dark, bloodied red, and it pulsated with rhythm. Mar's heart began to beat loud enough she could hear it, and realized it matched the flickers of the cube.

Mar blinked, and hurried out of the closet. She ran back into the main cavern, just as Ratchet activated the Ground Bridge. He looked at her and scoffed. " _Where_ have you been?"

"I-"

She was interrupted by Raf coming to her side and hugging her. She smiled and hugged him back, best she could at her height.

"I'm sorry. It was just a little much. The end of the world, and all of my new friends risking their lives. Not to mention I couldn't do anything about it. I just needed a break."

"Do you think they're...?" Jack asked Ratchet, pointing to the ground Bridge, unable to finish the question.

"Four life signals. One very faint." The medic answered. Uncertainty was on his face.

Jack was about to ask which one, when Optimus came floating through. Earth's gravity took effect on him again, and he landed with a powerful stomp on the ground. Mar left Raf's hug to greet him. "Did, did you win?"

"I pray so."

"Either way, I'm just happy you survived." Mar smiled up at him, and from the look of his eyes, he was smiling back.

Her favorite Lamborghini came barreling through. Miko cried out Bulkhead's name and hugged his finger when he got to a stop.

Finally, a tired Bumblebee holding the limp body of Arcee. Mar found herself unable to breathe. Out of all of them...Arcee was the unlucky one?

"We lost one this week, by the Allspark, don't let it be two." Ratchet said to himself.

Jack went right up to his guardian, and put a hand on hers, trying to shake her awake. Her eyes, although dim, opened, and she gave him an amused smile. "Jack, really? There are other motorcycles in the world."

"But you're my first." He replied with sincerity.

"And Megatron?" Ratchet asked Optimus.

"Not even he could have survived ground-zero." He answered.

Mar found herself smiling. Now that sunuva biscuit could rot in hell for what he had done to the Autobots.

"Prime!" Fowler called out, interrupting the quiet moments between all of them. "I didn't get to thank you, 'Bots, for the save." He opened the elevator doors, stepping inside. "I owe you one. We all do." He promptly left, and Mar could breathe normally again.

"So is this the part where you say good-bye and and tell us we need to forget we ever saw you?" Miko asked Optimus. She looked like she was about to cry. Mar walked over and put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her.

(Okay, maybe she could at least think Miko was damn cute.)

Optimus lifted his battle mask and gave them their answer.

...

Mar finished smoking her bong, and sighed. Yes. This was a special occasion all right. She just survived an almost-apocalypse. She deserved some of this good vape.

She let her high pass, and went to answer an email from the leader of the Mechanics Club.

_Mar, you've missed 5 days in a row in the past week. Are you doing okay? Don't be scared to share your problems with the club. We're here to help!_

_WARNING: If you miss 6 more in a row, we will have to ban you from the club. Sorry, it's the rules._

_Love, John_

She was very aware John had massive crush on her. She should have been banned already. She decided to go pay him a visit, and explain.

Walking into the building, the smell of fresh metal welded and oil greeted her. She absolutely loved this environment. John perked up when he saw her. "Ah, the mysterious mechanic returns! With a new 'do! Here to join up for our session?"

"No, actually. I'm here to pack my things."

John cocked his head quizzically. "Why would you need to do that?"

Thankfully, the crush he had on her was not mutual. "I'm quitting the club, John." She explained.

He looked heartbroken. "Oh...I see. Uh, can I ask why?"

A familiar car beeped outside. Mar turned to see her favorite Urbana 500 and her brother waiting for her.

"I've...found a new enterprise. And they want me."

Meanwhile, Ratchet was mumbling to himself while wandering around the silo.

"I don't understand humans...Primus, this is exhausting, having to coexist with them...but that Rafael kid does show promise..."

He opened a supply closet, and was hit with his least favorite smell-

"Cannabis." He growled. "Why does this supply closet smell like that wretched pla-" Something caught his attention, and he shut up.

A dark red cube of Energon sat in the room. Ratchet stared at the phenomenon, scanning it. His readings showed it wasn't Red Energon, but wasn't normal Energon either.

"Sweet Solus Prime."


	9. History Class

Yippee! Mar's school was having a science fair at the same time Jacks' school did! Now everyone could suffer together!

She heaved what she had began of her project and some tools onto the ground. Her plan was to build a moving contraption. She already made the thing, a circular, ringed object that would move by spinning on it's top, and it wouldn't go flying in any direction like actual ones did. She called it Sat.RN. Now she just had to wire it to make it move like she wanted.

Mar opened her sketchbook to find the blueprints she made for it. As she skied her pages, she smiled at her sketches of the Autobots. Mar loved sketching out what she thought were the best parts of them. She typically liked Bumblebee's eyes, Bulkhead's feet, Arcee's torso (blush), Ratchet's neck and back, and Optimus' fingers.

She sat down, picked up perfectly round cone of steel, and began to do her magic.

Since the author doesn't know a nut from a bolt, she won't be elaborating on Mar's workshop skills, o anything of the sort, really.

Mar was interrupted by a loud boom. "DECEPTICONS!" Ratchet shouted, and he and Optimus arrived at the scene. Mar looked down from the high-rise she sat on (next to the elevator), and smiled.

Raf's giant volcano had gone off by accident.

"It's no attack, Ratchet. It's my volcano." he explained to the worried Bots. Then the clay and paper mâché promptly melted. "...Or, was."

"Hold still, Bulkhead. Jupiter needs its red spot." Miko asked her big friend, painting a large model of the planets in the solar system. One of many drops of paint fell to the ground, and Miko halted her work to inspect the mess.

"What. ln the Allspark. Is going on in here?" Ratchet clenched his hands, frustrated beyond compare.

"Our projects are due tomorrow." Jack told him. He was standing next to an old motorcycle, maybe from the 40s, trying to get it to work again.

"Maybe it needs one of these doohickeys." Arcee picked up a schlondpoofa-I mean, a car muffler, and handed it to Jack.

"You're a motorcycle, Arcee. Shouldn't you know how to build a motorcycle engine?" He asked her, raising an eyebrow.

"You're a human, Jack. Can you build me a small intestine?" She said with an amused smile.

"Well, you can't work on these projects in here. You're...making a mess." Ratchet tried to find some excuse to get them out of here.

"But the science fair's a big part of our grade."

"Yeah, if Bulkhead doesn't help me finish this model of our solar system-"

"And what does Bulkhead know of your solar system, or Bumblebee of your volcanos, or-

"Arcee of our motorcycles?" Jack finished, unimpressed.

All three autobots looked at each other, slightly offended by his comment. Bulkhead had a digit up, meaning to interject, but held back from saying anything, lowing his servo.

"We're not earthlings. And they're _not_ scientists." Ratchet concluded, shaking his head (and quite satisfied with his argument).

The blue and red truck put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "But the autobots are their guardians, Ratchet. Would it hurt to learn more of Earth by helping our young friends with their, schoolwork?" Optimus told him, clearly more open about Earth projects than the medic.

"Well, maybe our young friends should try learning more of Cybertron." He muttered back.

"Ok." Mar stood up. "Then tell me about Cybertron. How did it all begin?"

To her surprise, _Optimus_ answered her question. "There are many places to start, but I'll start where most of our kind know. There were what we call the thirteen original Primes, created by our mysterious life-bringer, Primus. They ruled and rebuilt our planet after the defeat of an enemy to Primus. It only collapsed after one, Solus Prime, was killed by Megatronus, having been manipulated by another Prime, Liege Maximo. Megatronus was quickly defeated by the hands of the others, and Liege Maximo decided to take matters into his own hands; but he fails as well, and...ahem."

Optimus stopped rambling, regaining his composure. "I'm sorry, I may have gone off on a bit of a tangent there."

"I didn't expect you to remember all that." Ratchet noted.

"Just because this War consumed my duties does not mean I have forgotten my knowledge of Cybertron's deep history." Optimus reminded him, quietly.

Mar went back to work. Maybe...I dunno...an hour passed? She tried to fire the machine up, but something caught and it refused to move. Mar cursed and opened it up to rewire some of the technological shit she had in there.

Bumblebee finished beeping something to Raf, seemingly explaining a question.

"Really, Bumblebee?"

Bumblebee chirred and whirred at Raf.

"Then how do you make warrior class?" More beeping. "But I've seen you in action. You're awesome!"

"I second your opinion, Raf." Optimus agreed, joining in." But Autobot life cycles are much longer than those of humans." He put a hand on Bumblebee's shoulder. "And though it may be hard to believe, our young scout still has much to experience." Bumblebee looked down, but nodded in hardened agreement.

The moment between the three was interrupted by the computer making noise. "Exposed Energon, and it's on the move." Ratchet reported, the computer screen showing energy signals flickering here and there.

"And since we ain't moving it, guess who must be...?" Bulkhead said in a sing-song voice.

"Decepticons." Arcee finished, grumbling.

"Without Megatron?" Ratchet asked Optimus.

"Unfortunately, Megatron's legacy will live on as others rise to take his place. Autobots, you have projects to complete. Ratchet, I may require aid."

The ambulance took one last look at Raf, Jack, Miko, and Mar doing their schoolwork. Something seemed to peak his interest. "The science fair _is_ a big part of their grade. Perhaps I'm better suited to remain behind and advise." He decided.

"Very well. Bumblebee, let us see about this Energon in transit."

The young scout's eyes lit up, and then twirled a bit more to show he knew the danger of this mission. And he was ready to learn how dangerous it would get.

The two left for the area, and everyone got back to their own work. Ratchet looked at the volcano, and actually smiled with giddiness. It worried Mar. She moved her project away from him a few centimeters, as if that would do much. She turned to Arcee. "Hey, why does Optimus know so much of Cybertron's history?"

"He...well, let's just say he was a history buff before the whole War began."

"History buff? Optimus? I like him more already." Mar went back to affixing stuff to more stuff.

"Yeah. He was real different before all this happened, I hear."

"...War does change people."

"Has your planet gone through a war as big as this one?" She asked, curious. Jack bit his lip. "Uh...have you ever heard of World War 2? That comes pretty close."

"Nope. Hey, maybe put that thingy on the other side, might help with balance." She nudged the motorcycle with a finger.

"Well, you're in for a history lesson..."


	10. That Escalated

Jack explained World War 2 to the awe of Arcee and Bulkhead (from afar, he was still helping Miko). They noted many similarities between their War and WWII.

Unfortunately, while they were all so busy talking, nobody noticed Ratchet was doing his own thing. By "his own thing", I mean remaking Raf's volcano Autobot-sized and made entirely out of metal. This did catch everyone's attention at some point, and the humans and machines stopped doing projects and went to stare at Ratchet being...Ratchet, I guess.

"Where is it..." he muttered to himself.

"What is it?" Raf asked Ratchet, bot sure if it was a volcano or a super-weapon. Considering the talk about WW2, he hoped for the former.

"You'll find out." He told him.

"But, Ratchet, shouldn't I be doing the work?" Raf reached out for what was meant to be his project. Ratchet stopped him.

"Eh, yep yap yip! Don't touch! Just watch. And _learn_."

Bulkhead looked over his shoulder at Miko's model and started backing away. "So, we're just gonna go help Jack and Miko finish their-"

"Without my supervision?!" Ratchet interrupted. "You want them to be right, don't you?"

Bulkhead and Arcee glanced at each other, not sure what that might mean in human culture. It meant a lot of things.

"Then watch, a master, _at work_!" Ratchet's eyes widened with excitement and he grinned wildly, reminding Mar of a mad scientist.

"Control freak." Miko mused.

"He better not lay a digit on my Sat.RN." Mar said.

"Don't you worry, I'll help you with that in a moment!" Ratchet called out.

"Over my dead body!"

"Maybe I can arrange that!"

"OK, up yours!"

"What does that even mean?!"

"It means you can push that little sparking finger of yours UP YOUR AF-!" Mar's mouth was covered by Jack's hand. The poor guy had scurried over to ensure she didn't go too deep into a fight with crazy mastermind over there. And in moments, Ratchet had taken Mar's beautiful little contraption into his own servos. Mar could only watch in despair.

Maybe a joint would do her some good.

"I can't watch." Mar made an excuse for herself and left for a dark part of the Autobot base. Once again, she pulled out her lighter, dug out a joint, and lit it. She took a deep breath, and exhaled smoke. She felt tired, and numb. Nothing mattered. Nothing would ever matter. Not now. Not yet.

She smoked for a long while, and let her high last. Soon, her phone buzzed, and she checked her new text:

_Are u ok? Ratchet wants you for the project thing._

She texted back.

_i'm fine just can't handle that mechanical maniac touching my stuff i'll be there_

There was one problem-she was still a little bit too high. Everything seemed so bright and hazy, and she felt pretty hungry. Mar smacked herself on the forehead a bit, trying to focus. This wasn't the first time this happened, but it certainly was still an issue that she needed to fix. She put on her sunglasses the moment she walked into the main cavern, where Ratchet waited for her giddily.

"Here!" He placed a strange, cubic sphere on the ground in front of her. It was much too big for her taste, and it's dimensions were physically impossible. She let herself laugh a bit.

"What is dat?" Mar said, still woozy.

"Your new Sat.RN! You wanted to make something that would move in circles, but how about something that moves in every dimension?"

"...Can I wake it up?"

"No no! Not until the Science Fair! That's when the testing begins!"

"But what if som-"

"Shush, stop! You can tell me all about it tomorrow!" He pushed her in the direction of Bulkhead. "Bumblebee's still out for now, so Bulkhead will be bringing you and your project home!"

"I'm-uh..."

Miko begged him to drive them all home, and he complied.

Miko's house was in a different neighborhood, very nice and cozy. Mar bid her farewell, and Raf directed Bulkhead to their house (Mar excused herself, saying she was very tired and anxious).

They parted ways, the project sitting outside next to the trash can. Where it belongs, Mar thought to herself. She yawned and reached for her sketchbook, wanting to imagine just for a moment it was how she had imagined it. But as she reached for her purse, she realized it wasn't there anymore.

SHIT.

Meanwhile, Ratchet had finished tending to Bumblebee and Optimus, after their fight. In 12 hours they would get another exam and be deemed "fine".

Bee was bored, so he poked around for something to do. On a high-rise, he found a pretty looking stack of papers, wired together. He chirred with curiosity and picked it up gently, enhancing is vision so he could see what was written inside.

There were blueprints for all sorts of machines. Cars, planes, little technological achievements. There were also sketches of machines he had seen around town, like the oil mill and rusty cars (Bee didn't like the rusty cars). He flipped a few more pages, and found a page scrawled with intelligible notes. Some were barely readable. He deciphered best he could in Earth Language-

_I'M A LIAK_

_I NEED TO TELL HM_

_N NONOOOOO LET YOURSELF BE GOOD_

_FEEEEL GOODD_

_NRGON HIT ME OUCH_

_BLUE BULE BLUE BULE FUNY TO SAID_

_I SEE VISHUNS_

_Why is there a big robot dancing in my dreams?_

Slightly disturbed, Bumblebee turned the page (it smelled different than the rest of the book anyway), and almost tore the book in shock.

There, smack dab in the middle of the paper, was a perfectly detailed picture of-

[Sweet Solus Prime.] Bumblebee buzzed. [Optimus! Optimus, you need to see this!]

He hurried to his leader, holding the book with a digit and thumb. Optimus was right there, holding his servos out in a calming gesture. "Calm down, Bumblebee. What is it?"

[I found these papers, and somebody drew this...I think it's a Prime!]

"Let me see." Optimus was handed the book, and he almost dropped it in shock. "How could anybody draw him in such perfect knowledge? Cybertronians who remember what he looked like are no longer here."

[Who is that? Is it a Prime, or somebody else?]

"The first of our kind, and the first Prime. ...Prima."

Indeed, an almost exact replica of Prima was drawn, and he seemed to be dancing. Optimus turned to the front cover.

THIS BOOK BELONGS TO _: Maria-Alejandra Esquivel_

_If found, please bring it back and DON'T STEAL MY IDEAS_

_(I got my eyes on you money grabbers!)_

"We must see Mar as soon as possible."

...

The next day, Mar wheeled in her project.

The teacher stared at it. Jack gave her a very fake smile and a thumbs up from the back row. "Miss Esquivel. What is that."

"It's a...thingy." She activated it, but it rattled, short-circuited, and fell apart. She shrugged.

"...A for design, F for actual function. Thank you, Miss Esquivel."

Bumblebee came to pick them up. For some reason he was very eager to get back to base. It worried Mar; she could feel the seats shaking in fear under her.

As soon as they came in, Ratchet was there to greet them. "Well? How were my-uh, our projects received?"

Mar wanted so badly to flip him off, but before she could do that, Optimus was there. "Maria, may I speak with you? In private?"

"Uh...sure, Optimus." She shrugged and followed him. Once out of sight, he opened up his chest compartment and handed her the missing sketchbook. "My book! Thank you, I was so worried!" She hugged it to her chest.

"Actually, I was wondering about something I had found in it."

"Yeah? What is it?"

Optimus kneeled down and opened it up for her, turning to the page with the scrawled notes. Mar squinted at it. "I don't remember writing that."

"Turn to the page after."

Confused, Mar decided to trust Optimus and found the picture of Prima. She, of course, had no idea who that was.

"Woah. Did you draw this? I...I don't remember drawing this. It's too good, anyway."

"Maria, you must listen." Optimus put a finger gently on the page. "That is a picture of Prima."

"Who's...Prima?"

"He was the first of our kind to ever exist. And the ones who knew him, the ones who know what he once looked like...are gone."

Mar was now _very_ confused, and looked back at the photo. The longer she stared, the more she realized that was her style of drawing. And the weird poem? That was her handwriting.

"Optimus, what does this mean?"

"I don't know." He looked at her solemnly. "But this is an important matter that we must keep watch on. If you find more photos of Prima, or anybody else who resembles him, tell me as soon as you can. Perhaps we can figure out how you managed to draw them, and why you do not seem to remember."

"...I will. I'll keep an eye out. Do you want to keep the drawing?"

"For your safety, yes."

She ripped the page out without question and handed it to him. They both returned to the hall, but before they stepped around the corner, Mar put a hand on his foot. The truck halted. "Optimus, you said nobody who's seen Prima or even knows what he looks like are alive anymore. How do you know this is him?"

Optimus paused before answering. "I suppose, in a way, I was once his greatest ally. And I still am."

And the two walked together in silence.


	11. Aw Shit, Buddy

"Miss us, doc bot?" Miko greeted Ratchet. It was Saturday, and since Mar quit her mechanics club, that meant she had the entire day to either smoke or join the Bots in some crazy adventure.

Ratchet groaned. "Shouldn't they be in school?"

"On Saturday? We have the whole weekend off to spend with you." She gave him a smile, earning a frown in return. He mumbled something, craning his neck to see if anything on the computer would give him an excuse to do something, ANYTHING else than babysit. Upon doing so, however, he gasped in pain, touching his neck and pulling his head down.

Mar climbed up the ladder. "Hey, you ok?"

"No, to answer that, I am not! I've been having problems with my neck cables for quite some time, and it's only getting worse."

"Let me see." Mar reached a hand up towards his neck.

"Why in the Allspark would I allow you to do that?" Ratchet pulled back.

"Because," Mar reached up for him. "I like machinery and I might be able to fix it."

"...Urgh-eh-rrr-fine." He gave in, leaning down and showing the spot where it hurt. Mar noted the cables were shimmering a hot red, much like inflammation you'd see on a human's skin. One cable, though, was a few centimeters out of place, and right below the swelling.

"Hold still. This may hurt." She put two hands on the cable and pushed it down, watching it reconnect easily with the others like magic. Ratchet yelped in pain, but then realized there was nothing else wrong. He turned to the left, and then the right, and nodded to himself.

"Ratchet. What do you say?" Mar asked him teasingly.

"Mrmrhghfhhrrrthankyoughrhrhrrr..." Ratchet said under his breath.

"You're going to the arctic? I've always wanted to see snow." She overheard Raf talking to Optimus and Arcee, apparently heading out for a mission.

"I would invite you to join, Rafael, but the conditions are much too extreme, even for we autobots."

"I understand." Raf said solemnly, watching the two walk into the portal.

"But," Optimus turned at the last step forward. "I will bring you back a snowball."

Her brother smiled. "That would be awesome." Raf agreed. And they were gone. Something nearby crackled and exploded, but Mar was still recovering from a recent high that morning, so she didn't really care.

"So, what do you guys think we should do today?" Bumblebee answered with happy beeps and miming a video game controller with his digits. "Video game tournament! Last one standing wins!" Raf translated.

"Bulkhead, Bumblebee! Here! Now!" Ratchet called from afar. Bee shrugged, but the two went to answer his call. Mar noticed Bulkhead rolled his eyes as they went.

"Prepare to be destroyed." Miko grabbed the controller before Raf could.

"Yeah, not really my thing, Miko." Jack said, looking away.

"Oh? Scared of losing? To a girl?"

Jack fought internally for a moment, then snatched the controller. "Bring it!"

"No mercy."

Miko started up the game, giving Jack enough time to see a sad Raf sitting next to them. "Hey, Raf. You want to take on Miko for me?"

"...Nah. I have stuff to do." He got up and wandered away, Mar watching. She sighed and pulled out her sketchbook, drawing a scribble of Ratchet's angry face with a caption reading "I NEEDED THAT!!!"

(He said that a lot.)

She kept sketching, drawing cars and eyes and that familiar Autobot symbol. She absentmindedly sketched while watching them play; drawing without looking was a trick of hers to come up with ideas. But something Mar didn't notice at first was that she was sketching with her left hand, not her dominant right.

She looked down to see what she might have drawn, then saw the face of an Autobot she had never seen before, and strange symbols next to him. She blinked, and started to hyperventilate. He looked like that Prima guy's cousin. She needed to tell Optimus.

Before she could ask Ratchet to get the comms going, a loud noise from the television screen scared her, and she dropped the book. Jack stood up, pointing at Miko and yelling in victory. "In! Your! FACE!" Then the lights flickered, and all electronics turned off and on again. "Great. Power failure."

"Aw. It wiped out our game." Miko said with a smile, getting up and walking away with those fabulous hips of hers.

"But I was winning!" Jack pleaded.

"Bummer."

"Hey Ratchet?!" Mar called out.

"Later, Maria-Alejandra!" She hated it when he called her that, and he knew it. "We most definitely have a problem. But what could have caused this?" He was inspecting a strongly shaped grid of wires and buttons. But it wasn't strangely shaped-those were random burn marks.

The lights flickered again, Mar almost tripping down the stairs to join the group.

"Or that?" Bulkhead pointed out.

"Might be the main grid. Hopefully, it isn't a substation malfunction." Ratchet wondered.

"Hey, guys. Look what I found!" Raf walked into the room, excited and...holding something. It was small, round, and...cute?

It had big purple eyes and a mechanical body. Mar wanted to touch it.

"We're busy-AAAGH!" Ratchet actually screamed in fear, dropping the grid and morphing his arms into blades. Bumblebee and Bulkhead did the same, cries of fear escaping their metal lips. They had all their cannons aimed upon Raf, prompting the others to stand in front of him for added protection.

"Scraplet! Scraplet!" Bulkhead screamed.

"What's a Scraplet?" Raf asked, curious. Mar touched the creature with her left hand, and it purred under her touch. She rubbed little circles on it's head, and it buzzed violently, enjoying the attention very much.

"The most dangerous vermin ever to crawl upon the face of Cybertron." Ratchet stepped back.

"...This? Are you kidding me?" Jack replied.

"You're giant robots." Miko jumped to make a point. "Scrappy here is...teeny."

"You have no idea of the damage that teeny thing can do!"

"Aw, he wouldn't hurt anything." Raf patted it's head, and it opened it's eyes wider, and stared at the three Autobots.

Based upon it's reaction, Mar didn't think it was too cute anymore.

It suddenly opened it's face-yes, it's face-to reveal a massive set of whirring teeth, and jumped out of Raf's arms and went beeline for the Autobots. They started shooting it, but the little scrapper dodged every shot easily, and left forward. Latching onto Bumblebee's leg, it started eating the skin right off him, trailing a line all the way up. He grabbed it with one hand, but it literally ate OUT OF HIS PALM and went for his arm. Bumblebee tried to shake it off, and in a desperate attempt, aimed his cannon at it.

"Bee, don't!" Mar ran for the poor Autobot, crawling up his arm herself and trying to avoid his wounds. She grabbed the little thing and found herself stuck, it having bit down hard into Bee's arm. He screamed, the most human sound that she ever heard come out of his mouth. 

"He says take it off!" Raf said for him.

"But I'll rip him-"

Bee bumbled in protest.

"HE SAYS HE DOESN'T CARE, JUST TAKE IT OFF!"

Mar, with all her strength, ripped the Scraplet off his arm, resulting in a deep, nasty wound. The two fell to the ground face-first, Mar hugging it to her chest so it wouldn't escape. The thing went in circles under her hands, but stayed put.

Carefully, she got off it, wanting to see if it had extinguished it's strength.

Instead, it opened it's mouth and went for bee again, and Mar tried to stop it with her leg. It didn't notice the blockage and bit her thigh, tearing through denim and human skin. Mar screamed as it's teeth clamped through her own flesh and left two symmetrical cuts, much like when a dog bites you. The creature scuttled back, seemingly disgusted, and made it's way around Mar's leg. It went for the Autobots again-

When Raf himself stopped it by slamming a pipe over it's metallic body, crushing it easily. He kept going, screaming with each swing, before Jack stopped him from going wild. "Whoa, easy there, killer."

"Ah-fu-gah!" Mar grimaced, and saw Raf turn in her direction. She waved her hand nonchalantly and pointed to bee behind him, and Raf went to him. 

"I'm sorry Bumblebee! Is he gonna be okay?" He asked.

"Only a few mesh wounds, and a mild searing. He'll live." Ratchet helped Bee get to his feet and go work on the injuries.

Bulkhead pointed to Mar's gently bleeding thigh. "I'm not one to know, but I don't think that is considered 'okay' for humans."

"Buddy, I hate to tell ya, but," Mar got up, ignoring the searing pain. "I've gotten worse in my old club's workshop. This is nothing." She looked at Bee. "Sorry, big guy."

He shrugged and nodded, chirping quietly. "He said he's gotten worse ones too." Raf translated. "Sis, are you alright?"

"Get me a band-aid and I might live." She told him with a smile. In no time she had bandaged her leg, and stood up, leaning on the other more. The bleeding had already stopped by a lot. Bumblebee's own arm had strange, glowing metal clampings upon the main wound, which seemed to stick to him by magnetizing. He looked over and gave her a thumbs-up. Mar pointed to the alien bandage. "Question, how do you guys heal your own wounds? You use magical nano-machines or something?"

"The same way you humans do, I suppose. Leave it for a while and it'll heal on it's own." Ratchet answered. "But we have bigger problems." He sighed. "A Scraplet problem."

"Uh, bug squashed, game over, right?" Jack asked, motioning to the carcass.

"No. When it comes to Scraplets, there's never just one. And I fear I know how they got in here."

Ratchet led the group to a find, a huge metal ball once encased in ice, now dripping and warm. "It's a trap. A Scraplet trap." He explained.

"Uh, an empty Scraplet trap." Bulkhead noted, looking over his shoulder.

"Most likely ejected into space eons ago, only to wind up in the arctic, where the temperature kept them in stasis."

"Until we brought the thaw." Jack said.

"Now they're wide awake and ready to brunch." Miko added, looking at her friends with concern.

"How many are we talking about?" Mar asked.

"Thousands. And the power malfunctions and ground bridge damage are sure signs that their infestation is well underway."

She stared into the void of the halls, shivering.


	12. Bees vs. Bugs

"Op-ase-core-bl-act-idge" The static was louder than the voice, and it was hard to decipher what exactly Optimus was saying through the comm. Ratchet pounded the computer keyboard lightly with a servo. "The damn Scraplets have gotten into the com-link system! If we don't eradicate these creatures immediately, they will reduce the entire base to a scrap heap!"

"I say we bug out of here and let them keep it!" Bulkhead begged the medic.

"Evacuation is not an option. If we don't get the ground bridge back online stat, Optimus and Arcee will perish." He reminded him coldly.

"They...will?" Jack took in the information.

Miko created a paradox and _agreed_ with Ratchet. She walked over to Bulkhead, giving him a face of disappointment. "Bulkhead, you never run!"

"Miko, you haven't seen a swarm of these things devour a bot. I have. They pick you apart from the inside out, going for the small, juicy bits first -- Fuse by fuse, circuit by circuit, till there's nothing left, and I mean _nothing_. Not even your optics."

An image of an Autobot came into Mar's head, it's head the only thing left of it as a legion of Scraplets began to devour it's own jaw, still open from screaming. She blinked a couple times and put a hand to her head, disturbed.

"You have to let us help." Jack walked up, distraught and worried.

"We're not made of metal." Raf added.

"Yeah. The Scraplets can't hurt us!" Miko smiled up at her guardian.

"Typically, I find your fleshiness to be your least engaging quality. But it would appear to provide an advantage under these extremes." Ratchet mused.

"Gee, thanks Doc Bot."

"Okay, good. So we pair off...one bot, one human. I'll watch your back while you repair the ground bridge, Ratchet." Jack nodded to his friends. He did have the good makings of a leader. _There's more to this guy than meets the eye..._ Mar thought.

"And we go on a bug hunt." Miko said with enthusiasm.

Bumblebee and Bulkhead looked at each other, processing this information, for a moment, and realization grew on their faces. "Oh, boy." Bulkhead mumbled, while Bee shook violently in fear, making a buzzing sound the whole time.

"Hey, Bee, it's okay. I'm not gonna let another Scraplet get on you, okay?" Mar looked at the young bot and smiled. She felt that she had to accompany him after the reckless failure of the first Scraplet attack. She should know better. She would not make the same mistakes this time.

Bee acknowledged this, and calmed down a bit, his eyes softening some.

...

"You know, I was bitten by a snake once. Nasty little nope rope. Anyway, from then on, I've been terrified of snakes. And they are all over the place here!" Mar was trying (key word: trying) to make Bumblebee feel better by recounting her own stories of scares by pests. It wasn't exactly working.

"Don't these things ever stop eating?" Raf inspected a long trail of Scraplet feasting on the walls, following it to an old sewer doorway. Bee looked around nervously before attempting to tiptoe over to them. Naturally, he caused somewhat of a ruckus. Once they reached the door, Bee motioned for the siblings to stand back and tore the covering off, his blaster ready to fire. Raf and Mar readied their weapons-a pipe and a sack filled with scrap metal.

There was nothing.

Clinking was coming from the vent behind them, and all three turned around in wide-eyed fear. Of course, a little army of Scraplets burst through, searching for supper. "Bee stay back!" Mar wanted to say, but was interrupted by a sudden barrage of ionic plasma hitting the creatures. Bee shot all around him, Mar and Raf escaping into the sewer passage to avoid being disintegrated. The crappers still kept coming, and Bee resorted to stomping the ground around him when they got too close. His wounded arm seemed to lock up for a moment, making Bee stop firing to hold it in pain. The Scraplets took their chance, bolting over to him. Bee fell over, tripping on his own feet.

Mar and Raf climbed over him and let out a war cry, hitting the pack and standing in front of Bee protectively. The sack swung around like a bowling ball, almost hitting Mar in the face and instead squishing a Scraplet to the wall. Bumblebee got up and began smacking at the ones on his body. Raf dug out the particularly stubborn ones from Bee's frame and hit the rest.

After the longest 50 seconds of their life, they had eradicated the pack. All there of them sat huffing, Bumblebee seeming to grate through his vents to do so. "Are you okay?" Raf turned to his guardian, but Bee shook his head and held his arm. What looked like blue liquid was leaking out of it.

"Let's get you back to Ratchet." A clanging noise was sounding through the vents again, and all three bolted. The sound got steadily further and further away, and once it stopped, Bumblebee collapsed to take a breather...or whatever their equivalent of breathing is, I guess. He beeped something.

"He's asking us if we're alright." Raf said.

"Us? Bumblebee, we are fine. You're the one I'm worried about." Mar answered.

He looked down, worried.

The three made their way back to Ratchet, Bulkhead and Miko joining up with them. The big guy limped over. "Ratchet, get the patch kit. We're leaking energon like-whoa!"

The entire room was filled with Scraplets swirling high up in the air, the laws of physics bending to their gluttony will. They buzzed and chittered, attacking Ratchet. Half of the group saw Bulkhead and Bumblebee, and looked with hunger in their big purple eyes.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Mar screeched. "WHEN COULD THEY DO THAT?!"

They opened their mouths and flew over, teeth sharp and pointy. Bumblebee responded by shooting packs of them, while Bulkhead threw around his mace. "Eat this!" He shook several off his hand, and 50 more swarmed around his head. He screamed and tumbled around, while Miko tried to throw her wrench at them in the air. Bumblebee was quickly reduced to a scrapheap on the floor. Three of them were chewing away at his metal patch. Ratchet was already on the ground, Jack spraying him with a fire extinguisher...

 _OF COURSE_. They had an aversion to cold!

"I'M GOING TO GO GET MORE FIRE EXTINGUISHERS!" Mar yelled to her comrades. "Ratchet?!"

"Closet-agh-down the hall!" He croaked.

Mar ran for it, finding the human sized closet and opened it, the room stuffed with a clutter of things. Brooms, buckets, what looked like old computer parts, and an assortment of fire extinguishers fit for an entire airport complex. Ratchet must have found every scrap of what he deemed unnecessary and moved it in here. Mar dragged two of the extinguishers, ignoring the pain in her arms, and stumbled back to the main room.

The Scraplet horde was still coming. All three were on the ground, jerking around in pain. Mar dropped one of the weapons on the floor. "Guys! USE THESE!" She yelled, picking one up and giving is a toss in Miko's direction. It rolled along the floor, and the girl quickly abandoned her wrench for the freezing substance inside the red can. Knowing Raf would be too small to lift this, Mar picked the last one up herself, and ran over to Bee yelling. She lugged it all the way over to his injured arm and fired point-blank. They were dead in seconds.

With the new tools in hand, 3 minutes passed, and the Scraplets were all lying dead or squashed on the floor. Raf and miko continued to pound the carcasses with all their might, while Mar sat down to find her breath, her face red. Jack continued to spray whatever squiggling Scraplets still lay around, while the three Autobots laid on the floor in pain.

One Scraplet next to Mar turned it's head up towards her, and she stood up and slammed the bottom of the can on top of it. More whirring echoed in the room, so Mar heaved the extinguisher in the other direction and prepared for more not-so-dead bugs...but there was nothing.

"Is it over?" Jack asked.

Ratchet scoffed. "Hardly. These were just scouts."

Bee buzzed something hoarsely and let his head fall to the floor.

"So, the rest of them know we're in here?" Bulkhead stammered.

"And if we allow ourselves to become their next meal, Optimus and Arcee will never make it home. We must get the ground bridge operational." Ratchet insisted.

"Then we can use it to send the Scraplets anywhere on Earth!" Jack snapped his fingers. "Why not back to the arctic? We already know they don't do cold."

"Sweet! One-stop shopping."

"Given the body mass of the Scraplets, sub-zero temperature should freeze them on contact. So think, Ratchet. Think!"

"If the ground bridge is still down, there must be a breach in the energon fuel line." He smiled, pleased with himself. Bumblebee and Bulkhead, on the other hand, were not so happy with another expedition.

"If we weren't breaching," said Bulkhead. "One of us could get back over there and fix it."

"Ahem." Mar stood up, alerting attention to the three Autobots. Mar put a hand to her chest. "Hi. Mechanic in town here. You know, I could take a look at it."

"What are you talking about? Our machinery is either much too complex or dangerous for you. It could very well burn you, or you could contaminate it, or even be poisoned it it's active enough." Ratchet argued.

"I don't think we have much of a choice here. You guys are in no shape for pipe work. We can go. The Scraplets can't hurt us." Mar pleaded.

"You could do one thing wrong and-and-"

"Ratchet. We'll be careful. We'll barely touch the stuff, okay?" Jack added. "Just tell us what we need to do."

Ratchet sighed. "...Hrgrhrhrgkffffine. First, you'll need one of these to cover the breach..."


	13. Darkness, My Friend

Mar inspected the pipeline. Blue liquid was gushing out of the top of it, dripping to the bottom. They had to work fast.

"Hand me the flashlight, please?" Mar stuck out her hand and Jack put the electric torch in her palm. She surveyed the problem, and sighed. "Get me the covering, please."

The "covering" was a piece of bending metal used commonly on Cybertron. It didn't need to be melted or heated to bent in different directions, only welding was necessary to keep it in place. Mar carefully positioned it around the open area, and held it in place to weld the top to the pipe. It took around 15 minutes, but the breach had finally closed.

And a huge whirlwind of Scraplets sped right by them.

Jack bolted, yelling down the hall in case they could hear them. For some reason, Mar was a little slower to react, but ended up at the back of the chain of yelling kids anyway. The cloud of Scraplets went upwards into the vents, and a lot of banging echoed in the halls. Just as the four emerged from the depths of the halls, so did the swarm of hungry feeders.

"Ratchet, all systems go! Fire it up!" Jack screamed. Ratchet looks dat them and seemed to breath a sigh of relief before limping to a standing position, making his way to the power handle. "G-ground bridge...activated..." He pulled down, falling to the ground with it. The familiar colors of the swirling vortex came into view, and Mar gasped. She had been holding her breath the whole time.

Bulkhead, realizing nobody was coming through the portal to provide bait, decided to use himself. He stood up, waving at the horde. "Ready for the main course? Come and get it!" Bulkhead staggered into the portal, the Scraplets happily following. Ratchet held Bee down, the storm of grey and purple disappearing into the arctic.

132 seconds passed. Mar blinked and took a step towards the portal.

The silhouette of three Autobots came stumbling into view, and Optimus and Arcee were most definitely frozen solid-but they were alive.

"Optimus!" Mar cried out. "Arcee! Thank God!"

Bulkhead gave them a thumbs-up. Ratchet was up, lifting their arms around his shoulders. "Bulkhead, help me get them to the de-frosting tubes, now!" They walked over a stats as they could, Optimus and Arcee leaving behind a wet trail of melted ice.

With the humans' help, the medical stations were quickly set up. Arcee and Bumblebee were on large metal berths, while Optimus and Bulkhead sat against the wall next to them. All sorts of equipment were hooked up to their chassis.

"That thing we found in the arctic, it was a Scraplet trap. It thawed out while you were away, and the little fuckers decided to eat through the energon pipe line to the bridge." Ratchet explained, reclining between Optimus and Bulkhead.

Arcee raised an eyebrow from across her medical berth. "Did you just use a human curse word, doc?"

"What? Nooo..." Ratchet busied himself with checking Optimus' fingers to make sure they were intact. "You heard me say fraggers, Arcee. Clearly the temperature is getting to your head." Optimus gave Ratchet a look.

"Old friend."

"I'll admit I'm using human slang when Megatron admits he's an Autobot."

"No, Ratchet." He glanced in the direction of the humans just below them. "There are children here."

"Puh-lease, have you heard what comes out of Maria-Alejandra's grill?"

Maria-Alejandra, meanwhile, was looking at the status of Bumblebee and looked up. "I can hear you, you know."

"Report energon level status."

"Levels are now in the green and continuing to rise." She responded with a small sigh.

"Good. Keep the drip in, he'll need a little extra after today." Ratchet frowned. "I'm afraid I had to use high-grade to speed up the process..."

Bumblebee whirred something rather slurry, and Bulkhead coughed. "I'm sorry...what?"

"Something about a drawing book...?" Raf muttered.

Mar cleared her throat and ignored him. She had an idea of what he might be taking about, and didn't want to think about it right now. Ratchet continued to give tasks to the group. "Report bio-circuitry status."

"Levels are rising." Jack reported for Arcee.

"Excellent. Rafael, keep a close watch on Bumblebee's electro-pulse monitor. Miko, check Bulkhead's interface patch."

"It's steady." Raf said.

"Looking good." Miko gave a thumbs-up.

Optimus lightly nudged Ratchet with his shoulder. "Perhaps you should get some rest yourself, old friend. You saved quite a few lives today."

"It...wasn't all my doing." Ratchet admitted. "We're just fortunate that this infestation happened on a Saturday." He glanced softly at the kids.

"Our human friends may be small, but they are strong." Optimus agreed. The two smiled at each other, thankful to finally have some time to rest after today.

It was interrupted by a shrill scream. Miko was standing 15 feet away from where she should have been, staring at the ground. Jack was right beside her with a wrench. "Scraplet?!" He asked, his eyes scanning the room wildly.

"No, s-spider! Is it on me?! Aah! Get off!" She turned and ran into another room, her hands flapping around her body to get the arachnid off. Mar looked at the ground and saw a little brown spider. She reached out with her foot and squished it. _Sorry little buddy, but I_ am _a predator._

"Did she just scream like a little girl?" Bulkhead mused.

Saturday ended quietly, and the kids all wanted to walk home to give their guardians a break, but Optimus insisted he was well enough to drive them a few miles to town (much to Ratchet's chagrin).

The four packed themselves into the seats of the semi, which felt freezing by the way, and he drove off. Miko ran a hand over the leather seats. "Wow, you're pretty snazzy for an old semi, Optimus."

"Thank you, Miko." He responded.

Mar was in the passenger's seat, staring out into the desert. She hadn't had anything to smoke or vape all day. She felt very uncomfortable, and couldn't shake this feeling out of her stomach. Jack looked over and touched her arm. "Hey, you okay?"

Mar jumped at the contact, then relaxed. "Yeah, I'm fine. Today was just really hectic." She looked down at her hands. "It reminds me of the time we had a wasp nest in the garage, remember that Raf?"

Raf put is face in his hands. "Don't remind meee~" He begged his sister. Mar chuckled, and soon enough the truck was stroking through town. Optimus parked next to an apartment complex.

"I'm afraid this is as far as I can go safely. Will you four be alright making it home?"

"Yeah, we'll be fine. Thanks for the ride!" Miko climbed over Mar and opened the door, hopping out with little grace. "Stay safe big guy!"

The other three got out, thanking him for the service, and left to walk to their own homes. The truck turned around and drove away, sunlight reflecting nicely on the painted metal.

...

"I don't understand!" Ratchet banged his fist against the table. "It looks like Red Energon, but the chemical composition is nothing like anything I've ever seen before. I'm out of answers!"

[Ratchet, you should really go and rest. It's been a long day.] Bumblebee said, limping over. [...What is that?]

On the research desk there was a rather small-ish cube of Energon, but it was...this deep red, and seemed to be pulsating. Ratchet sighed and stared at the phenomenon. "I found this in one of our supply closets. I thought it was some sort of chemical reaction, but I was wrong. Wasted cubes of our own Energon testing. Then I tried to see if it was some sort of other substance, but the chemical composition still resembles Energon too much for that to be true. Then I thought that maybe, just _maybe_ it could be Red Energon, but all the data says otherwise!"

[...Ratchet, you can work on that tomorrow. You need to recharge.] Bumblebee took his friend's hand and guided him to the quiet room. [I'm sure you'll find the answer soon enough.]

Ratchet looked back at the cube and raised an eyebrow. He hoped the scout was right.

Meanwhile, Mar sat up in her bed, recovering from a nightmare. She slapped her cheeks and got back under the covers, sweating. Her heart was beating much harder than it had before.

The nightmare was very disturbing. It consisted of a large Decepticon killing a poor Autobot. They were arguing about something, and it escalated into something worse. The Decepticon shot what looked like a small, robotic creature, and they began fighting, but blind rage seemed to cloud their judgement. She remembered seeing the Autobot, a female, her face of horror when he shot her through the chest, a large hammer falling from her servos. She saw the face of her attacker, his expression slowly turning from rage to utter sorrow.

"I beg you, my forgiveness...I love you...to the stars and back..." She gasped, light fading from her eyes. 

The attacker screamed, watching as her limp body fall into his own arms.

"My dear Megatronus."


	14. Alien Space Party Time (ASPT)

"Optimus, we need to talk." Mar looked over the railing at the Prime.

"Is something wrong?" He asked, sincere.

"Yes, maybe, I dunno. I had this...dream last night. Something tells me it has to do with those drawings I've been making." She clutched her sketchbook closer to her chest. "It was...very real, and very disturbing. There were two robots fighting, and one of them died in the battle. I couldn't recognize them, but they seemed familiar to me anyway. Uh..." Mar opened the book and flipped to a page. "Here. I drew what I could remember from my dream last night." Mar was about to show the paper to Optimus when a loud sound alerted her from the little session.

"Optimus, I'm receiving a signal on a restricted band. It appears to be coming from a starship _inside_ this solar system. It's...an Autobot identification beacon." Ratchet said in awe.

"Don't worry, we can talk about it more later." Optimus quietly told her. Mar nodded.

"So there are other bots out there?" Jack asked Arcee.

She titled her head to the side. "The masses scattered to the galaxies when Cybertron finally went dark, but Cons have been known to bait traps with false beacons." Arcee warned Optimus.

He responded curtly, "Unknown vessel, this is Autobot Outpost Omega One. Identify yourself."

"I've had warmer welcomes from Decepticon combat brigades." Said a gruff voice on the comm.

"Wheeljack?! You old con crusher! What are you doing all the way out here?" Bulkhead sauntered over to the computer, a huge grin on his face.

"Bulkhead? That you? What's with all the security?"

"The rock we're on is crawling with Cons. How soon can you get here and even the odds?"

"Sometime tomorrow, if I put metal to the pedal."

 _It's pedal to the metal, but eh..._ Mar thought. _Anyway, who is this guy?_

"Another bot's coming here. How cool is that!" Miko whispered to Bulkhead, who smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Wheeljack...I know of him by reputation only. Can you verify his voiceprint?" Optimus was still concerned of the possibility it could be a trap.

"He is 1,000% the real deal, Optimus." Bulkhead assured the Prime.

"We will send landing coordinates, Wheeljack." Optimus told the newcomer. "Safe journey."

"See you soon, buddy. I'll make sure you get a proper welcome." Bulkhead promised his friend.

The comm blinked off. Arcee looked over at Bulkhead and smirked. "So, who's the boyfriend?"

Bulkhead chuckled. "Me and Jackie go way back. We were part of the same war unit, the wreckers!" He slammed his fists together. "Which means the Cons are gonna wish he never found us."

"Wait, _is_ Wheeljack your actual boyfriend?" Raf asked him. Mar's face went tomato red and she looked down.

"Uh...I guess?" Bulkhead clearly didn't understand what Raf really meant. "I mean, he's a bot, and I'm a bot, and we're friends."

"That's not what I meant..." Raf trailed off. "You know what, we can discuss this later."

"Wheeljack's ship is approaching the landing zone." Arcee reported.

"Maybe he'll stay!" Miko suggested, sliding off of Bulkhead's shoulder and onto the high rise. "Hmm. Have to find his own human, though."

"Ground bridge cycling up." Ratchet announced, pulling the lever, before the console crackled and sparked. He rammed it with a fist, growling. "Blasted Scraplets! Equipment hasn't been the same since the infestation."

Jack was about to ask why they were even firing up the Groundbridge, then it clicked. "So, Wheeljack's gonna land halfway around the world and then you'll bridge him here?"

"We can't risk revealing the location of our base just in case the Decepticons are tracking Wheeljack's ship." Optimus explained.

Meanwhile, Bulkhead was pacing rather excitedly.

"Dude, I've never seen you so stoked!" Miko said to her guardian.

"Oh, you're gonna love Wheeljack. We were like brothers. And tonight we are gonna party!"

"Sweet!"

"Party?" Mar asked. "You guys have parties?"

"Well duh. How else do we celebrate?" Bulkhead said. Mar's eyes twinkled. An alien party night. Now THAT sounded fun.

"Bogies closing fast on Wheeljack's position." Arcee pointed to the tracking map, five or six red dots trailing behind the green one representing Wheeljack.

"Con scum!" Bulkhead shouted. "Open the bridge, Ratchet! We're missing all the action!"

"I'll prepare sick bay." Ratchet prepared the ground bridge, focusing on Wheeljack's position.

"Who for? The Cons?" Bulkhead laughed. "This is _Wheeljack_ we're talking about."

He, Arcee, and Bumblebee stormed through the vortex. Only minutes later they returned...a new friend with them.

He had a red and green paint overlaying white. His body was tough, but still agile. He had two fins on his head, giving him the appearance of a scarred cobra. He smiled, and looked at the humans in surprise when he saw them.

The Groundbridge shut down suddenly, Ratchet kicking the console and groaning. Bulkhead wasted no time introducing Wheeljack to everyone. Mar gave him a shy smile, and he grinned back. She liked this guy.

Upon seeing Optimus, he stood a bit taller. "Optimus Prime, it's a privilege."

"Likewise, soldier. What have you to report from your long journey?"

"Been bouncing from rock to rock searching for signs of friend or foe." He motioned to the room. "Now I find both."

Ratchet looked up. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"We are few, but strong. We have suffered losses." Arcee looked down. "But we have grown. And we would relish welcoming a new member into our fold." Optimus said, and as always Mar felt a little bigger hearing his speeches like that.

"I would be honored." Wheeljack answered him.

"Then let's get this party started!" Bulkhead ouched his friend in the back, making Wheeljack almost reel over. He responded by chest-bumping him, complete with loud sounds of metal scraping against each other. Mar covered her ears.

Ratchet let his head sink into his servos. "Oh, joy."

...

Before Mar went to join the others for the celebration, she and Optimus talked outside. The cold desert air made chills run up her back. Optimus had his headlights on low to see.

She showed him what she drew, and saw Optimus stiffen. It was the moment just before the Autobot was shot at by her enemy. They had faces of rage, but also undeniable sadness for their actions.

"Is one of them a Prime?" She asked.

"Not one...both." He answered. The killer is Megatronus, the Fallen. The victim is Solus Prime, the Forger."

"Megatronus? Like...Megatron?"

"Megatron took his name after Megatronus, perhaps to commemorate how even if the whole planet makes him fall because of what he believes in, he will never be forgotten." Optimus sighed through his vents. "Megatronus and Solus loved each other, once. But they had an argument, which escalated. This," He pointed to her drawing, "Was the result. I find it hard to believe Megatronus ever forgave himself for that night."

Faint voices echoed from her dream.

_I shouldn't let him have it, Liege is strong enough already!_

_Your stupid animal is listening, isn't he? You don't trust me?!_

Mar put a hand to her forehead. It hurt a little bit. "Optimus...I'm worried. Why am _I_ dreaming about things even your people barely know about?"

"If I knew, I would tell you." The Prime said. "For now, though, go to your friends. Clear your head. Worrying about this will only make it worse." He turned the other way and started walking towards the desert landscape.

"Where are you going?"

"Patrol." He drove off without another word. Mar slowly walked back up the ramp to the base, the secret door closing behind her. She stared at the cover of her journal, still troubled by recent events. She was shaken from her thoughts when a huge metal ball went flying by her face. Mar stood up straight, her hair whisliting past her in the direction of the ball. She poked her head around the corner of the entrance and saw Wheeljack screeching along the floor, the giant ball in his hands.

"Nice lob!" He shouted to Bulk.

Mar ducked while walking into the lane of fire and stood climbed up to stand next to Jack and Arcee. "What did I just walk into?" Mar asked her.

"It's called lobbing, the favorite pastime on Cybertron, _especially_ among the warrior class." Arcee said with a smile.

Mar noticed Bumblebee made small grabbing motions with his digits for the ball as it was tossed around.

Miko had plugged her guitar into the speakers, and strummed it a few times. "Come on, Raf! Show us some moves!" She played a couple chords to persuade him into dancing.

"Oh, all right." He gave in, standing up straight. He put one arm out, and the other followed, and he was dancing much like...

"Of course. The 'robot'". Jack laughed. Bumblebee eyed Raf's movements and stood beside him, copying the dance. It was adorable. Mar pulled out her sketchbook to draw them, but stopped just as she was about to open it. She didn't feel like seeing all those pictures right now.

"Where's Optimus?" Jack asked Arcee.

"Went for a drive." Jack still stared in confusion. "Primes don't party." She added gently.

_So that's why he was so quick to leave for patrol._

"Coming at ya!" The ball was thrown sky high, Wheeljack running to the back of the room to catch it. It hit the wall just above his fingertips, and hit the Groundbridge console on the way down.

"You know, I am attempting to perform _sensitive_ _calibrations_ here!" She heard Ratchet bark at the pair of partiers.

Mar went back to thinking, before something metal tapped her shoulder. She jumped at the contact, then sighed when she realized it was just Arcee. "You, uh, need something from me, Arcee?"

"Just a few words." She said. "You look so stiff you're probably gonna snap." Her eyes softened. "Is everything okay?"

"Uh...I mean..."

"Spill it."

"Okay, kinda not. I've just been having these weird...visions, for a week or so now. I've been talking with Optimus about them, and we're still not sure why they're coming to me. I'm just so worried something bad might happen to me, or is happening to me." Mar looked down at the grated floor. "I'd tell you what they're about, but I don't want to ruin the mood of the party."

"Well, maybe settling down for the night will help." She gave her a smile. "If there's anything I know, it's that a worried soldier is more likely to be taken down first by enemy forces."

"Which means...?"

"It means you need to just take a moment and relax." She gently pushed her in the direction of the stairs. "Don't be the loner at this party, that's my job. Go have fun, and worry later." Mar looked up and nodded, smiling. She went down the stairs, leaving her sketchbook on the high-rise.

She felt the joint hit against her through the jacket pocket. She was definitely planning to smoke it when she had a chance to escape from the crowd.


	15. Hide Your High

The dancing was wild enough that Mar managed to slip away, deep into the bowels of the base to smoke.

Now, Mar had all the essentials to hide her high. A powerful smelling spray, eye drops, an emergency pair of sunglasses, and her constant practice of looking/behaving like a stoner (e.g. being paranoid, tired or uninterested) made it hard to tell if she really smoked or not. Most highs last 2-3 hours, but Mar didn't always get to keep hiding until it rode out. So, she had trained herself in the art of not being noticed easily.

Sure, Raf was rather inquisitive, but not even he knew much about drugs other than chemical compounds. And her other friends were still young like her and worried about other stuff than Mar being a possible smoker. If anybody ever saw her with reddened eyes, she'd say she's having allergies. If somebody saw her erupt into a giggle fit, she'd just say she remembered something ridiculous. If she was being ridiculously paranoid, they'd realize it was probably just a part of her personality. And of course, if she did something stupid or ridiculous, she was "just a teenager, obviously". Mar was a VERY good liar. People almost always believed her.

Spraying herself with the scented bottle, Mar stuck a breath mint in the side of her mouth and returned to the party. As she entered, everything seemed rather colorful. Wheeljack looked like a brightly-lit Christmas tree. Bulkhead was miming around the room, telling a story. "So, what does Wheeljack do? Tell them, Jackie."

Jackie was hesitant to answer, but still managed to say something. "Well, what I do best."

"He chucks his only grenade smack into the primary heat exchanger!" Bulkhead announced for him, proudly.

"Yeah, seemed like a good idea at the time." Wheeljack put a servo to the back of his head.

"The joint went supernova!" Bulkhead cried out, making Mar flinch.

"Awesome!" Miko cried out. Jack and Raf were wide-eyed in awe as well.

"Yeah, I'm still picking shrapnel out of my backside." Bulkhead put a hand to his pelvic region.

"I'm not surprised given the size of your backside." Arcee quipped at her friend. Bumblebee broke out in laughter.

Mar let out one high-pitched laugh, alerting everyone to her presence. She coughed. "Sorry. That was funny!"

"You missed all the fun, dude!" Miko complained. "Where were you?"

"Trying to find the bathroom. This place is fucking huge." Mar was content for a moment, before she saw Raf staring at her. "Oh, Raf, I'm sorry. I slipped."

He gave her a small smirk. "Don't worry, I won't tell Mamá."

Mar bounded over the the group. Jack smiled. "You seem...chipper."

"Dunno, guess walking around the base for an hour or so helps you calm down and stop obsessing over the weight of life's problems."

"That was...rather specific."

"I know, right?" Mar shrugged. Jack shrugged back.

Bulkhead leaned down to the group, pointing towards Wheeljack. "There it is, Jackie's signature. One grenade, one shot." Bulkhead looked at his friend, and noticed he wasn't paying attention to the conversation. "Hey, you all right?"

"What?" Wheeljack snapped back into reality.

"You don't seem like yourself."

"Well, what do you mean?"

"I don't know. You seem quiet."

"Aw, I've been stuck in a can too long. I should go topside before I get stir-crazy."

"I have patrol in the morning. You can come with." Bulkhead offered.

"Let's go now."

"And break up the party? Come on! The gang's loving you! You got to tell them about the battle of Darkmount Pass!"

"You tell them. You're better at it." Wheeljack looked away, disinterested, and spotted Mar. "How about if Mary here shows me the rest of your base? since she spent the last hour walking all over it?"

Bulkhead stuttered a bit before regaining his composure. "Well, yeah, sure, Jackie. Hey, go ahead."

"My name's actually Maria-Alejandra." Mar corrected Wheeljack. She got down from the metal box everyone was sitting on. "Come on, I'll show you around. I know a few places, but you gotta be really fucking careful. One wrong turn and...you get lost."

Wheeljack walked slowly with her, trying to keep the pace. "That kid was right, you are rather chipper."

"Raf estimates it's because I finally wake the hell up later in the day, and I'm obviously more energized. Listen, when I go to sleep, I really don't wake up for a while. I stay half-asleep even when lunch rolls around." That was her explanation for being more exuberant after a high. "Oh, and just so you know, I prefer the nickname, 'Mar".

She looked up at him, and didn't notice how fake his smile was.

...

The tour lasted for maybe half an hour, and Mar saw the world slowly grows little less funny and a tad more normal. Then Wheeljack popped the question. "Where's this bunker located exactly?"

Mar slowed her pace. "Why do you want to know that?"

"I'm just curious. Wouldn't you be?"

"Yeah..." Mar wondered to herself. The paranoia still remained. "Does it really matter that much to you? We can just bridge you in whenever."

He shrugged. "Can't say it does. So, uh, any way out of here besides bridging?"

"You're asking, lots of questions."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"No...it's just...suspicious." She stopped walking. So many thoughts were running through her head. Lots of very, very terrifying ideas. "I listen to TV a lot while I work, and I've seen this exact situation play out before."

"How so, Mary-Alejandro?"

"You said that wrong, and I prefer Mar anyway. So this one guy comes by to do a thing with the hero, right? But turns out he's actually a bad guy in disguise."

"Wow, what a twist." Wheeljack said with no emotion.

Mar stared up at him. "What's your name?"

Wheeljack rolled his optics. "Wait, you seriously think _I'm_ the bad guy here? Come on, it's just been a while, and I've seen the glitching with the Bridge. I just wanna know how I can escape in case it shuts down."

"Escape?"

"Okay, you're right, poor choice of words. But you are being a lii-ttle paranoid. Calm down." He kneeled to her level. "I'm the real deal, okay?"

Mar stared him in the face. "I'm not sure I trust you."

Wheeljack's optics narrowed. "Alright, if you're gonna be such a glitch about it, then fine by me. Just don't go ruining everyone else's good time with your conspiracy theories." He stood up, almost squishing Mar with his foot.

"Hey, careful!"

"Whoops."

"Now I definitely don't trust you." Mar stalked behind him the entire way back to the main room, glaring at his pedes the entire time. As they entered, Mar walked right past him, giving him a severe death glare.

Wheeljack ignored her and instead tried to strike up a conversation with Bulkhead. "Hey. What are you guys talking about?"

"I was just telling the guys all about you and me at the battle of Darkmount Pass." He responded.

Wheeljack nodded absentmindedly. "That's a heck of a story."

"Yep." Bulkhead agreed, then adding with a nasty tone of voice, "Tell it."

"Talk, talk, talk. How about after we go off-roading?" Miko asked the two.

"Miko! Stay out of this!" He warned his friend. Miko stood back, a little startled. Mar came up to her, putting an arm in front of her and moving her away from Wheeljack.

"Bulkhead, easy." Arcee put a servo on his shoulder. "I'm not sure I-"

He jerked his shoulder away. "Tell it!" Bulkhead insisted.

"Fine. You want to live in the past, Bulkhead?" Wheeljack shouted angrily at his friend. "The wreckers were trapped between a Decepticon patrol and the smelting pit. The Cons were vicious, bearing down on us with everything they had. Me and Bulkhead engaged the enemy, left them for scrap, then I made us a way out using their backsides as stepping-stones to cross the molten metal. Isn't that how it happened?" He made a face of displeasure.

"Yeah. That's exactly how it happened. Except for one little thing."

Wheeljack rolled his optics, waiting for the criticism Bulkhead had.

" _I wasn't there._ "

Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and stared at Wheeljack. He was at a loss for words. "W...what?"

"I'd already left the Wreckers to join up with Optimus, but you wouldn't know that if all you did was access Wheeljack's public-service record." Bullhead concluded, staring into the fake Wheeljack's spark menacingly. He was taken aback, unsure of how to respond. Then he eyed Mar. 

She put a finger up. "Don't you fucking dare-"

Fake-Wheeljack swooped by, grabbing Mar roughly in his fist and holding her up. "Mar!" Miko called out. It all happened so fast, the world whipping around her, and next thing Mar knew she was in the clutches of a Decepticon. She struggled but only felt his digits close around her tighter. Her ribcage felt congested, and she had trouble breathing.

"Stay back, or I'll squeeze her into pulp." Fake-Wheeljack threatened.

"LET GO OF ME RIGHT NOW!" Mar screamed at him, but he only responded by locking his servo around her tighter. Now she couldn't breathe without everything hurting.

"Wheeljack, what are you doing?"

"Decepticon coward! Let the girl go and face me!" Bulkhead pleaded.

"Don't fret. Plenty of fighting to come." Fake-Wheeljack's voice was vastly different, now more like dull nails on a chalkboard than wheels rolling on asphalt.

Jack looked between the two Bots, panicking. "Is there a _real_ Wheeljack?"

"Oh, indeed, and I expect Lord Starscream is making sport of him." Fake-Wheeljack said.

"Who the fuck is Starscream?" Mar gasped.

Something on the Bridge console beeped, and Fake-Wheeljack leaned over and pulled the lever. "About time. Well, well." He walked to the entrance of the portal, waving Mar around like some sort of trophy. "Let's get this party started." Mar felt pressure around all sides as he was about to make her snap, crackle, and pop into a bloody mess. She couldn't breathe, and everything looked rather blurry.

_This isn't how things end, is it?_

A sudden somebody hit Fake Wheeljack's shoulders, the somebody slamming with enough force to knock Mar out of his servos. Bulkhead reached out and caught her, placing her gently on the ground. Mar looked up, shaking her head from the dizziness, and saw a carbon copy of the Fake Wheeljack kneeling on top of him.

"I'd shut that hole before the stink comes through." The real Wheeljack said, eyeing the swirling green vortex. Mar breathed a sigh of relief, even when the fake managed to crawl out from under his attacker. The two pulled out their swords, and began to circle each other. Everyone bolted for either side of the room. Bulkhead smashed his fists together, but Wheeljack gently blocked him with a sword. "Ugly's mine."

The two finally looked their swords together, each one moving the same as the other. It was like those doppelgänger battles on TV, only this time it was a close tie.

"Which one is the real Wheeljack?" Raf asked, kneeling beside his sister.

"Uh," Miko pointed to one, then the other, and stomped a foot on the ground. "I lost track!"

Metal scraped against metal, sparks flying. Just as one Wheeljack got the upper hand, the other knocked the sword from his servo and grabbed it, pulling it up so it bent in the wrong direction. The injured Wheeljack screamed, which was then interrupted by a knee to his tank. The fake fell to the floor, the real Wheeljack claiming both swords and sliding them back into their sheathes. His mouth plate uncovered to reveal a smirk.

"That's my Jackie." Bulkhead stood next to him, a servo on his back.

"You, hit the switch. It's time to take out the trash."Wheeljack instructed Ratchet, responded with a curt nod. He looked over and smiled at his big green friend. "All yours, buddy."

Bulkhead grinned, picking up the limp body of the faker and walking to the opened Groundbridge. She noticed Wheeljack attach something to the fake, but she couldn't quite see what it was. He held it up, whirled around, and threw it straight through the vortex. Mar could hear a chorus of voices yelling and pedes clanging against metal.

"Nice lob." Wheeljack complimented.


	16. Pays Well

The next morning, everyone finally had the party they were waiting for. Mar, for once, didn't feel the need to sneak away and have a joint. She felt good with her friends right here.

Maybe the adrenaline from last night was enough to keep her satisfied. Wait, did that mean she was an adrenaline junkie? It wouldn't hurt to try an alternative to sneaking away and missing stuff.

Miko was playing a song her father apparently wrote, everyone else dancing awkwardly to it. Bumblebee was copying Raf again, his move similar to the ones everyone did back in the 70s, with the finger pointing up and down diagonally. Mar tried not to show her cringe, but Ratchet glanced at her and nodded in agreement. "It's like a recurring nightmare." He groaned.

"You feeling okay?" Raf asked.

"Yeah, much better. I still got some nice bruises from the faker." Around Mar's torso were a few nasty bruises in the shape of Wheeljack-sized digits. Her mother had freaked out when she saw them, but believed Mar's explanation that she simply fell from the top of a parked truck.

She still forced her to go to a doctor, though. Thankfully, they didn't do any blood tests.

"Wait, you're LEAVING?!" Miko dropped the guitar, making a screeching sound along with it, and ran up to where Wheeljack, Optimus, and Bulk were talking. "But, why?"

"Some Bots never change." Bulkhead smiled, pulling his friend in for a side hug. "Wheeljack never stays, but he ALWAYS comes back."

"Wheeljack, know that you'll always have a haven here." Optimus said to his comrade. Jackie nodded in thanks.

Mar accompanied the rest of them to the goodbye party, which would take place outside next to a ground bridge portal. Wheeljack's ship was huge, and full of complex machinery. Mar almost wanted to sneak in and go flying with him herself.

"There's room for two, Bulk, even with a backside like yours." Bulkhead held back a snicker. "Who knows who we might find out there. Some of the old crew?" Wheeljack mused, staring up at the morning sky. Bulkhead looked back at his team, Miko holding an arm to her side in sorrow.

"Heh. It sounds like fun, Jackie. But my ties are here now, with them. With her." He looked at Miko, who grinned back. Wheeljack patted Bulkhead's back plate, then eyed Miko.

"If anything happens to my favorite wrecker, I'm coming after you." He joked, pointing at her.

"I'll take good care of him." She promised, pulling out her phone. "Now, say 'cheese'." She snapped a picture of the two. "This one's a keeper!"

Everyone said their farewells to Wheeljack, and he took off, ship and all. The aura was a little less exciting without him around, and everyone exchanged farewells as they got ready to head home for the night.

The moment Mar arrived home with Bumblebee and Raf, her mother told her to get a job.

"But mamá! I have my...robotics club!" Mar argued.

"Then get a job that doesn't have hours during the robotics club!" Ms. Esquivel snapped. " _El cariño_ , you do basically nothing on the weekends, and it's high time for you to start to pay for some things out of your own pocket."

"Mamá, I can't..."

"Fine. But I still won't be paying for all your mechanical toys and whatnot."

Mar opened her mouth to retort, and closed it again. Her mother was right. Mar needed to start adulting. And it wouldn't be hard to get a job that didn't clash with her time at the Autobot base. The hard part would be if she'd still be able to...well, do her own thing if she needed to.

There was one place she could think of.

Mar pulled out her phone and called a certain number. "Mar, is that you?" Jack's voice came in, fuzzy but hearable. "I'm about to start my shift, so please be quick."

"Does your job have any openings right now?"

"Uh...yeah, we always do. Why?"

"Tell your boss I'd like to apply." Mar ended the call, not wanting to hear Jack's reply, grabbed several snacks and went upstairs to sleep. By the time her alarm sounded, Mar was dressed in her best clothes and went out to meet Bumblebee, who just drove up at their house. "Hey, Bee."

Cue beeping noises, and such.

"Could you do me a favor, please? ... I need to get a ride to a place called K.O. Drive-In, please. ... Thanks Bee." She adjusted her rather lackluster bowtie and got in. The city around her slowly woke up, and the drive-in burger place was clearly just opening for the day. She thanked Bumblebee and ran inside, the cold morning weather biting at her. A worker looked up when she came in, and pointed to the sign.

"We're still closed, ma'am."

"I'm not here for food, I'm here to apply." Mar explained. She was directed down the hall, to the right, where a rather grizzled man sat in an office playing with a helicopter toy. She closed the door gently, and cleared her throat. The man did a double take and stuffed the toy under his desk.

"Ah, sorry about that! How may I help you?" His cheerful demeanor did not match his appearance.

"I'd like to apply for a job here, preferably the weekend shift."

"Ah, you got your goals all laid out for you." He smiled. "I like that kind of attitude." He smiled as Mar sat in the leather chair across from him. "Name's Edward Bueller. You know why I founded this diner?"

Mar shook her head rather slowly, confused.

"So people-rather, teenagers like you could get a quick buck without having to do much. It's quick to do, easy to grasp, and leaves lots of time for breaks. That last part's kind of imminent, since this _is_ Jasper, Nevada."

Mar breathed a sigh of relief.

"So what's your name kid?"

"Maria-Alejandra Esquivel."

"Okay Miss Esquivel, if you would please fill out these forms, I'll get you all taken care of." He slid a few pieces of paper across the desk, and held out a pen. "It's alright, take your time."

"Thanks..." Mar carefully took the pen from his outstretched fingers and got to writing.

...

Madre María seemed to be smiling down upon Mar, as her shift lined up exactly with Jack's, on a Sunday from 4:00 to 7:00. That meant she could just tag along with him and Arcee to the base, or Bumblebee could pick her up along the way if Raf was heading home.

Mar fitted her stupid worker's cap and waved to Jack when she came in. He gave her a look, waved, and went back to placing an order. An instant later he fumbled and snapped his gaze back onto her. "Mar?! You actually decided to work here?!"

"It has a...fair pay and good work hours. Mamá said I need a job or else she's not paying for anything else I want."

"Can't exactly argue with that, that's how I ended up here." Jack admitted.

The two (begrudgingly) got to work, sneaking fries and giving nasty customers dirty looks, when Mar noticed the bright blue motorcycle outside blinking her headlights on and off. Jack poked his head out of the window and sighed in relief. "That's Arcee. We need to get to base."

"Wait, you bring Arcee to work with you?" Mar asked him, surprised.

"Well, yeah. She likes to watch the-never mind. We gotta go." He grabbed Mar's hand and rushed out of the diner, yelling to Bueller that they were "late for something important". He didn't bat an eye, and Mar managed to snatch her purse from behind the counter before Jack left with her. Outside, she saw a couple more teenagers riding up to the diner for their shifts on bikes. Deus ex machina, Mar supposed.

Jack hopped onto Arcee. "What took you so long?" She quipped.

"Traffic." Jack replied. "Mar, get on." She swung a leg over the motorcycle, feeling the leather and metal rubbing against her hands. She hugged Jack as Arcee started herself up, and made a move on. The second she was out onto the empty highway, she increased her speed and Mar almost fell off, practically snapping Jack's ribs with her arms.

They stopped suddenly once inside the base. Mar did fall off this time, Jack hopping away from the seat rather awkwardly. Arcee transformed and noticed the humans around her pedes. "Sorry. It was an urgent call."

"It's fine, but a warning next time?" Mar looked up at the motorcycle, and she gave her an amused nod.

" _PRIME! PRIME!_ " A loud, familiar voice yelled from the main computer system, not to mention it was in sync with video footage of a tall, African American man wearing a business suit, sitting in the cockpit of a jet and scowling. Ah, so that was why she was in such a hurry.

"Special Agent Fowler?" Optimus greeted him politely. "To what do we owe-"

"What else? 'Cons!" He snapped. Mar walked up the stairs to the high rise, and caught a glint of irritation in the Prime's optic. "I chased them off with some hard ordnance, but not before they blew me out of the sky." Fowler continued.

"Again?" Miko muttered quietly, smiling.

"They tried a smash-and-grab for the dingus."

The children's eyebrows went up in confusion.

"The...what's it?" Arcee spoke for the whole team.

"Dynamic nuclear generation system, AKA, DNGS." He explained. Mar quickly put two hands in front of her mouth to stop laughing, but loud giggles kept escaping her lips. Fowler pressed some sort of button, and an image appeared onscreen. "It's a prototype energy source I'm porting to the coast for testing. And no, I did NOT come up with the name!" Fowler added, hearing Mar's laughter.

"That's absurd. Why would Starscream bother with such primitive technology?" Ratchet stared at the image, a cube of sorts. He wasn't impressed.

"I'm guessing to make a big fat primitive weapon of _mass destruction_. If this baby were to melt down, it would irradiate this state and the four next door!" He slumped back in his pilot seat, and Mar noticed he wasn't wearing a flight suit. Odd. "I'm a sitting duck here, Prime. I need you to spin up your bridge and send the DNGS to its destination before the 'cons come back for it."

"I'm afraid that sending such a volatile device through a ground bridge is out of the question. If there were to be an accident during its transmission, the radiation of which you speak could propagate through the ground bridge vortex and harm all 50 states and beyond." Optimus answered.

Miko realized what he meant, and laid her arms around her sides.

"You got any better ideas?" Fowler crossed his arms.

Optimus and the others spoke for a minute, and came to the conclusion that they would transport the DNGS themselves, protecting it from any more attacks (much to Ratchet's chagrin). Once they reached the drop-off point, they would continue to keep an eye on it in case any more attacks were launched.

The thing is, it would be a VERY long mission, and would take up most of their time. If any Cons decided to have a party somewhere in the USA, they wouldn't be able to just go and stop it. Thankfully, Bulkhead of all bots theorized that the Decepticons would be so focused on trying to get the DNGS that they wouldn't be attacking anywhere else.

Optimus, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead went to go pick up Fowler and the DNGS, and everyone else stayed behind just in case there was a surprise. Mar really wanted to go with them, but instead watched with the others as Ratchet got the trackers set up.

"We are locked onto your coordinates, Optimus." Ratchet announced, three blue dots all driving in a line. "Barring any complications, you should reach the drop-off point by sundown."

The comm link responded by a bunch of loud beeping, and Fowler yelling. " _Move it, Gramps!_ "

" _Agent Fowler, is that really necessary?_ " Optimus said, clearly irritated by his behavior.

" _Ah, don't tell me you're one of them textbook drivers._ " After a moment, he spoke again, but Ratchet quietly pressed a button that silenced the conversation. There was no sound, but the audio readings still came up onscreen. Mar assumed Ratchet could read it, somehow. He rolled his optics about 10 times during the silence, then his brows lifted in alarm and he pressed the button again.

" _-Shot me down!_ " Fowler suddenly yelled. " _Who is he? Wingnut? Dingbat? Skyguy?_ " There was a moment of silence. " _Huh. It's_ a _whole team of 'cons._ "

"What? I'm not picking up anything." Ratchet said, staring at the map. "Maybe they're using some sort of cloaking technology..." He put a digit to his chin, muttering.

The Prime's voice crackled through " _Our assailants are not Decepticons._ " There was a brief pause, as if Optimus was still trying to comprehend the situation. " _They are human._ "

"Human?!"

"Oh, please. Taking on our bots? They're roadkill!" Miko stuck her tongue out at the screen.

Mar swallowed. Maybe these guys were crazy enough to do it. Maybe crazy enough to win. No, no, she couldn't think on that. They'd be pummeled.

"I'm going after them." Arcee rolled a shoulder back. "Maybe if they see my holo-form Sadie, they won't be so inclined to use force." Ratchet heeded her words and let her go through the ground bridge. She transformed and sped away, Mar could hear the distant sounds of screeching and acceleration.

Mar sat down, wishing she could do _something_. She felt so useless here. If only she was as big and strong as them, as Optimus Prime-

An image of that femme, Solus Prime, flashed behind her eyelids for a second, and she stumbled back, catching a railing. The others looked back. "Mar? You okay?" Miko asked.

"I just, feel like we need to do something. I'm getting sick just standing around here."

"Welcome to my life." Ratchet muttered. Then he saw a couple of red dots pop up onscreen. "Optimus, you have company!" He commed.


	17. Dingus

Silas and MECH, huh? Things just got interesting. Rather, for the worse.

Mar assessed the situation. He was no Mister Krabs, so he didn't want to see the thing. She doubted he'd want to destroy everything, but then again some men just want to watch the world burn. But how would he have so many people on board for that quest? What did they want? Why did they want the DNGS?!

The comm link for Optimus suddenly shut off. Ratchet gripped the keyboard in worry. "Optimus is down." He began talking to Arcee sporadically, asking her what the situations was, only to receive comments like "FIGHTING HERE!" or "WHAT DO YOU THINK?!".

"Come on, think. All right, if this "MECH" wants the DNGS, they have to get on that train." Jack was pacing, trying to figure something out.

"What if we get on board first? You know, run some human-on-human interference?" Miko suggested. She mimed throwing punches. Mar put a hand to her aching head.

"Absolutely not!" Ratchet protested.

"Yeah, that would be suicide." Jack agreed.

"Hello, the United States of Meltdown! Not to mention the Land of the Rising Explosion!" Miko stamped a foot on the ground. "Lives are at stake!"

"Yes! Yours!" Ratchet clamped a hand down on the rail hard enough to make it dent. "You want me to not only bridge you into a confined space, but one traveling at 90 miles per hour?" He started talking faster with every word. "I can't even count the number of ways that can go wrong. Mass-displacement trauma, twisted limbs, metal burn...!" He stopped himself, and stared at the four fleshy humans. "Well, maybe not the last one."

 _Wait. He actually cares about us._ Mar realized. _When did that happen?_

"R-regardless," Ratchet continued, "It is nearly impossible to fix ground-bridge coordinates on something moving at that speed."

"Would it help if we had access to the train's coordinates?" Raf had been sitting at a desk the entire time, and he had pulled up the map coordinates Fowler had given the Autobots, and somehow was able to track the DNGS as it went along.

"Well..." Ratchet mumbled to himself. "I..."

"Thinking about this makes me want to puke." Mar finally put a word into the conversation. She stood up straight. "As scary as this is, there are more lives at stake. Ratchet, I know you care about us-"

The mech's face heated up red upon hearing that.

"But I can't think of a better plan. I can't believe I'm saying this, but...I'm in. I want to go on that train." Mar's hands shook. "No matter how fu...freaking terrifying it is."

Ratchet stared at her, and sighed. "You're right." He pointed at Raf. "You stay here and help me with communications. And you three," He pointed at Jack, Miko, and Mar, "Please go stand in front of the ground bridge. Now, when I turn it on, I need you to run and jump. Understand?"

They nodded.

"Good. Wait, Jack, give me your cellular device." Ratchet took the small thing and handed it to Raf, whispering something. It was plugged in, and he gently gave it back to Jack. "I've allowed this phone to access our comm-link system. Call me the moment you arrive on that train." After some time adjusting the console, he locked onto the coordinates, the little team climbing down to do what was probably the scariest thing in their lives. Just before he pulled the lever down, Ratchet said one last thing. "Mar."

She looked over, interested.

"Don't let this be another decision that haunts me." He pulled the lever, and all three humans ran for it and jumped through. As they went through, the portal curved downwards, and the tunnel seemed to get smaller and smaller. Mar finally landed inside a train car, on top of Jack and Miko.

"We're in." Jack phoned Ratchet.

" _I read you, Jack. The cellphone-comlink patch works._ " Jack sighed in relief. He looked around and slid open the train doors, the and blowing in his face. He caught sight of a helicopter, it's engines slowing down as it went right above the train car behind them.

"Raf, MECH's landing on _top_ of the train."

" _In about 20 seconds, you're gonna come to a fork. Brace yourselves._ " Raf told them. Jack shut the door, and all three stumbled backwards into it as the train made a sharp left turn. The helicopter flew off the train, but came flying right back. There was a sound of slamming metal, and the familiar sizzle of a blowtorch.

"Shiiiiiit." Mar mumbled.

"So, what'd that buy us? Ten seconds? Raf is losing his touch." Miko sighed and cracked her knuckles.

The burning square was almost complete. the three backed up quickly and grabbed a weapon-Miko a hatchet, jack a fire extinguisher, and Mar...her own wits.

"Sorry, do you want the...?" Jack held out his "weapon". Mar assured him she would be fine.

The metal dropped to the floor, and three men in skin-tight suits wearing goggles poked their heads inside. One cocked his head. "Children?"

"Who're you calling children, you rusting titanium beetles!" Mar screamed at them.

They suddenly disappeared from view, and the helicopter flew over their heads, getting quieter the futher it went. Miko grinned. "That was awesome."

Jack put down the extinguisher. "Do you think they're gonna search another cart to find the DNGS?"

"That wouldn't explain why they moved their whole helicopter." Mar wondered aloud. "Sure, the DNGS is heavy, but..." For some reason, she just knew. "Optimus must be here."

"How are you so sure?" Miko fumbled with the hatchet.

"I don't know, I just have a feeling..."

Jack pressed a button on the phone, and frowned. "I hope you're right, because guess who we can't contact anymore?" He sad in a sing-song voice. In response, there was a deep rumble reverberating across the tracks, loud enough Mar could feel it.

"That wasn't me, right?" Miko opened the door, and her eyes widened. "Good news and bad news!"

A red and blue blur sped past them.

"Optimus is here!"

Rocks came flying from the other way.

"I think something happened to the track! There's smoke ahead! If we crash, then the DNGS..." Miko looked back at the group, realization on her face.

Mar looked at her feet, clenched her fist, and yelled. She punched the metal wall of the train. "DAMN IT!" She began to use and blather on in Spanish. Her loud rambling drowned out Miko and Jack's discussion on how to buy a few more seconds of life. " _No puede terminar así, todavía necesito estar allí para mi familia, y he vivido una vida tan poco saludable, ¡y tengo tantas cosas que quiero seguir haciendo!_ " She clasped her hands together. " _Dios, si estás escuchando, por favor, por favor, ¡déjanos vivir! ¡POR FAVOR, TE LO RUEGO!_ "

_I've been such a bad girl. But I don't have the strength to change._

In that moment, big, heavy metal footsteps made the train shake, and the smooth motion of the wheels suddenly stuttered. Metal screeched not far up ahead. Mar continued to talk to herself, holding onto the walls. The force was enough to practically leave her stomach behind.

" _Que eso sea_ Optimus _. No estoy diciendo así. Me niego. Voy a vivir Voy a encontrar un camino. Estoy seguro de ello. No ahora, pero algún día. Yo me arreglo Solo necesito ayudar a salvar el mundo primero._ "

She faintly heard the sounds of somebody spending every last drop of energy on stopping that train. The screeching of the tracks was loud enough only a Cybertronian could hear her. 

"DON'T GIVE UP!" She yelled out loud.

The train stopped. Mar jerked forwards, and then back, falling on her butt. Large metal footsteps revealed Optimus, just as safe as the humans were. Jack and Miko waved at him, while Mar just smiled in relief. She was hoping he was smiling too under his battle mask.

She also noted that she liked the feel of adrenaline.

...

After staring at her empty bong for a while, Mar knew she needed to stop. This weed business was going to be a problem, if it wasn't already. Of course she couldn't tell anybody, what would they think? She probably wouldn't be allowed to see the Autobots anymore either. She wanted to occupy herself with something else. Hell, she had started bringing joints into the base with her. That wasn't like her, to do something that idiotic.

Of course, she wouldn't stop completely. No, she just needed to slow down. People would get suspicious the more she snuck off to smoke. Maybe instead of twice every week, she'd smoke...once every 1-2 weeks? That should keep anybody off her trail.

But she couldn't stop thinking about it, about weed and getting high. She didn't have anything else to really look forward to. I mean, she could always draw, but those visions were creeping her out enough she refused to look at her sketchbook. She didn't have any ideas on a project to start on. The best thing was to do something with the Autobots. ...Then, it clicked.

 _Well, maybe they should learn more of Cybertron,_ Ratchet had said.

Alright then. Maybe she should. She doubted anybody else had tried to compile data on them besides how easy it would be for a human to go squish under a foot. Mar would be the first. Summer vacation was also coming, so that would give her even more time.

The next day after school, Mar brought a journal, her phone, and a polaroid camera she scrounged up from the garage. While everyone else went to go play a new video game Raf had brought, Mar plopped herself down in front of Ratchet's workstation.

He looked up and glared. "Can I help you?"

"Yes." She opened the journal and activated her voice memo app. "Tell me, wait no. Teach me about your species. What are you?"

Ratchet was taken aback. He blinked, and his digits fidgeted with the tools in his servos. "W-well, where would you like to start?"

"Biology."

"...I guess you picked the right medic." He cleared his throat and picked up a data pad next to him. "I doubt you'd understand any of this, but I'll humor you."

"Shut up, Doc."

He gave her a stink eye, and brought up an image of what looked like an Autobot, without any of the plating. "Here. You can study this. Don't worry, it's available in many languages." He laid the large glass pad down, next to Mar. "Have fun."

She stared at it. It was unbelievably intricate. She tapped a part that resembled a heart, and it suddenly zoomed in, a more focused image. New diagrams popped up around it, and Mar saw the heart-thing labeled as a "spark". She took a couple pictures, and proceeded to scribble down her findings. There was too much. Deciding to start with the (big) basics before going down to molecular levels, Mar panned it back out. Servos meant hands...optics meant eyes...those she knew. She didn't know that "dentae" meant teeth, though.

Although Mar didn't notice, Ratchet was watching her work. He actually smiled for a moment.


	18. Fear It

"And your stomach is...called a tank? Interesting." Mar wrote down another note. "How do you absorb the nutrients from Energon?"

"The same way you do with your...food. But we use every last _bit_. No waste is left over, expect for maybe a few mineral scrappings from the mines. And even that gets reabsorbed into our system eventually." Ratchet explained.

"Cool, cool..."

Mar had finished her study on the Cybertronian nervous system, including the "processor" (brain). Now, she was moving on to the digestive system and the absorption of Energon, which intrigued her the most. There were different types, and different effects. High-grade was a lot like alcohol. Too much and you'd get a little silly, and then throw up (or rather "purge your tanks"). Low-grade was the type used to power other machinery, and Mid-grade was just regular processed Energon.

She saw Bulkhead drive in, chattering with Miko about college, and other adult things. "You sound like my parents." Miko rolled her eyes, Bulkhead transforming into his bi-pedal form.

"Aren't they...what was it...Japanese?" He asked, confused.

"You guys may sound different, but you say the same things."

Mar rolled her eyes and went back to studying. This was fun. Much like a real car, Cybertronians functioned using an intricate system of parts. Somehow, they were organic and machine at the same time. And their insides were almost a complete copy of the human body's, give or take a few soft metal pieces. The similarities between the two species made it so much easier to grasp the concept and understanding on how the biology worked, at least to Mar. She was eager to learn about their circulatory system next.

"I'm detecting a fresh energon pulse from the nation called Greece." Ratchet suddenly announced, the schematics of the country appearing on the screen. "In an ancient city. Quite historic, I believe."

"Ancient Greece, huh? Ohhhh, field trip." Bulkhead mused. Miko grinned, and she followed him into the Ground Bridge portal. Mar decided to take a break from her studying for a bit. She simply watched Ratchet work, until he noticed her staring.

"What?" He asked, irritated.

"Nothing. You're just nice to look at."

"Is that supposed to be a compliment?" He raised an eyebrow.

"In a friendly way, sure."

Ratchet narrowed his optics and muttered something. Mar picked up the data tablet she used for studying and went on her hands and knees, the device so big she had to move her whole body just to swipe to the next page. There was an article, although poorly translated into English, about...

Reproduction.

Mar wanted to wait a _long_ while before discussing things like these, and she quickly scrambled over the tablet, trying to find the stupid back button. All she did was skip several pages forward, and the top had the title "Other Reproduction Methods". Right under it was a small headline reading "Interfac-"

Mar didn't read the whole word, because she had finally turned the damn thing off. Her face was bright red, and she put her head in her hands. But now it raised the question. The, er, "human method" was listing on _other_ ways to make new Transformers. So...what was their primary method of reproduction? Also, how had they achieved so many ways of reproducing? 

"Uh...Ratchet?"

"Whaat?" he asked, exasperated.

"How do you guys...make new, Cybertronians?"

Ratchet simply answered, "The Well of Allsparks."

Mar had no clue what that was. "Can you please elaborate?"

He sighed, and put a tool down. "A long time ago, back on Cybertron, we were gifted by the Ancients a well that could bring life. It's connected to the very heart of Primus, or the Allspark, they say. Every few centuries, especially during times of peace, the Well would glow, and bring new life to it's surface." She saw the corner of his mouth, or rather "intake", curl up. "The new life was introduced in a weak, fetal state we call a "protoform", and they were very weak. We welcomed the younglings, integrated them into society, and so on."

"That's...really amazing."

"I should inform you, the Well hasn't been activated in centuries." Ratchet said, and looked down.

Oh. That must have been why they were forced to find other methods of reproduction. Mar wanted to say something, to comfort him...she couldn't imagine how it must feel to have the one thing capable of bringing life for thousands of years just, ripped away.

Optimus was here.

She turned and smiled at the Prime, who was walking in with a cube of Energon. He gave her a nod back, and tapped Ratchet's shoulder.

"Whaat nowwooOptimus!" He cleared his throat. "Sorry about that. Is there something you need from me?"

"Forgive my intrusion, old friend, but I believe you're in need of a refuel." He held the cube out towards his friend.

"What gives you that idea?" Ratchet asked, suspicious.

"As leader of this team, it is my duty to make sure all my comrades are well. Ratchet, have you been holding off on Energon replenishment?"

"...Just a little, Optimus. We need all of you at your full strength more than ever. Trust me, though, I'll be drinking it high-grade once we find another batch. Speaking of which, Bulkhead just found a good vein."

"Ratchet, I understand your reasoning. But I also insist." He held the cube closer to Ratchet. "You matter just as much as any-"

"I'm fine, Optimus." Ratchet interrupted, ousting the cube away gently. "Really. I've held out longer than this."

Optimus sighed, and gave Ratchet a nod of understanding. He couldn't force him to take it if he didn't want to. Optimus put the cube right beside Mar, just in case though. She stared at the blue cube, and it hummed with energy. It looked...familiar...

Suddenly there was a deep-voiced crackle in Ratchet's audial, then the familiar whirr of the Groundbridge.

"We, found something, Optimus." Bulkhead and Miko had returned from Greece, the Groundbridge portal swirling behind them. Bulk looked a little roughed up, while Miko held her phone out proudly. Ratchet uploaded the picture to the computer, and his optics widened. It was a Greek mural, depicting a man in a toga holding a golden orb out. It shone under the painted sunlight...and it certainly did not look human-made.

"Don't tell me it's what I think it is, Prime." Bulkhead said to his leader. Optimus mumbled something under his breath, and pointed at the tiny orb.

"It is indeed an energon harvester. A powerful tool created by the ancients to remove raw energon from any source." He explained to the humans, who had gathered on the high-rise opposite to Mar.

"Greek gods knew autobots?" Raf asked, delighted.

"No." Optimus replied. Raf's face fell. "The ancients often used the art of a given era to conceal messages. This fresco was likely a signpost indicating a harvester's location hidden somewhere on this planet."

"Uh, Optimus." Jack stood up and stepped closer to him. "If the harvester removes energon from anything," He gestured to the Prime's frame, "And you all have energon pumping inside you..."

"In Decepticon hands, the harvester would be a devastating weapon." He confirmed Jack's fear. It made Mar want to retch. Just imagining one of them having the Energon ripped from their bodies, tearing the metal on them apart as they slowly fell away and died painfully, with not a single drop of life left. It would flow out from them like a waterfall, leaving a mutilated husk...

"See? You were a genius to total that painting." Miko complimented Bulkhead, snapping Mar out of her thoughts.

"Miko's not wrong." He replied. "How can the 'Cons find the harvester without the fresco?"

"With high-speed Internet." Raf explained, having pulled out his laptop already. "If you do an image search for "Greek God" and "golden orb," this pops up." A picture of the orb was now onscreen, and Ratchet pulled it up on the bigger computer. This time it was huge and menacing. The lighting around it didn't help at all, making it seem like a forbidden fruit. "It's in a museum."

The team began to panic, and quickly discussed their next course of action. Mar just stared at the picture. She knew she would be absolutely fine, being human and all that, but it still terrified her. Imagining a human being hit with that successfully...oh Primus.

 _You should be terrified,_ something in the back of her head whispered.

She grew pale and sat down, leaning against the cube. She certainly felt better, and sighed. She tried to breathe...

"Mar! MARIA!" Raf yelled.

She opened her eyes to find everyone looking at her. She blinked twice. "What?"

"Didn't you hear them? We're gonna steal it!" Miko pointed to the picture.

" _We_? We're still discussing this~" Jack shook her by the shoulder.

"Steal it? That? Oh no...no, it should be destroyed." Mar shook her head and stood up. "It's dangerous, it could hurt you...me..."

"How could it hurt you? It's not like you have Energon flowing through your veins." Miko said, cocking her to the side.

Upon hearing that, Mar grew stiff. "It's...a big ball. It could roll somewhere and I could get squashed?" She gripped the railing. "Or it could hurt one of you, by accident."

"It's either our hands or the 'Cons. I'm fine with it being a risky object to have here." Arcee stated.

"I don't know." Bulkhead murmured. Optimus put a reassuring servo on his back.

"It may be our only option."

Mar didn't know why she was so scared of that golden ball, but she was. "Fine, go get it. But it's better being destroyed."

" _But_ it could help us find Energon, Mar." Ratchet explained. "And that is something we will soon run out of, with it or not."

"Be careful..." Mar sputtered out. "I'm gonna...lie down..." She went over to the couch and curled up there, while everyone else looked at each other in confusion. In no time, she had fallen asleep.

_This time, her dream was of somebody using the Harvester on a rock. Slowly, blue crystals jutted out of it, and made a beeline for the orb. They stopped just short of it, bouncing in a hole on it and falling into a cart below. The Autobot smiled warmly, putting the device down and picking up the crate._

_But something...clawed had taken the Harvester while he was busy. When he turned around to transport the Energon home, a Decepticon held it out in front of him. He pressed a button with a sharp digit._

_Magnetic waves began to rush out of it, and the Autobot trembled violently. The Energon was pulled from his cart, breaking it apart. His skin began to perspirate with blue liquid. He held a servo out and his optics widened in horror. From beneath the plating of his digits, energon seeped out and rushed to the Con._

_More began to pour from his arm, his neck, his torso, his legs. The Autobots screamed, and was quickly silenced by Energon seeping from his intake. His elbows cracked and snapped the other way, more Energon flowing. His torso plates slid and moved, wet with the liquid, bursting open to reveal his spark chamber-that is, his ribcage. He coughed up more energon, which floated in the air thanks to the Harvester._

_He seemed to cry, but it was only more of his lifeblood being sucked out. Through every orfice, Energon tore away. His leg plating flew off, revealing blue cables that pulsed and then broke from the force, and gushed. The same happened to his arms, his neck...oh, his neck. Several cables were now dangling in place, each shooting Energon at the Con like a fountain. His metallic organs and his spark chamber were glowing blue, then pushed outward, and subsequently destroyed as the lifeblood tore him apart like some mace bashing him through._

_After a minute of this, he was spent. The bot fell to the rocky ground, a gored husk. His plating lay around him, his mutilated insides sticking out for the cosmos to see. The endoskeleton that his metal skin once protected was now dried up. His heart, or his spark, lay dying, fighting to stay alive...before it slowly winked out of existence._

_And every drop of his Energon spiraled in front of the Harvester, glowing a gentle blue. His eyes were now a dull gray._

Mar sat up and screamed. She would never forget this dream.


	19. PanicPanicPanic

She screamed until she threw up, falling to the floor lazily. She hacked and coughed, before groaning some more.

"What is all the fuss-Primus!" Ratchet took in the sickly sight before him. "Sweet Solus Prime, Mar. What is wrong?"

Mar muttered something incoherent.

"What was that?"

"He's dead...he was killed...his flesh...his FUCKING FLESH!" Mar screeched, only to cough up more saliva.

" _Ratchet, is everything alright?_ " Optimus asked over the comm.

"NO! DON'T TAKE IT! DESTROY IT! DESTROY THE FUCKING HARVESTER! KILL IT!" Mar slammed her hands down on the metal until they bled. "YOU'RE! IN! DANGER!" She hit the floor with every word.

"Optimus, please focus on the mission. There is nothing here for you to worry about right now."

He was hesitant to answer. " _...Understood._ "

Ratchet silenced the comm-link on his end. Mar continued to strike the floor. "AAAAAAAAGH!"

"Maria-Alejandra, stop it, you're leaking fluids!" Ratchet may not have known much about human anatomy, but he knew injury when he saw it. "MARIA!" He resorted to picking her up, which Mar fought against. "Maria-Alejandra, I don't know what has gotten into you."

"R-Ratchet...I'm gonna die..." She slurred. "It was horrifying."

The medic set her down gently on the high-rise. "Maria. Tell me what happened."

"He...dream...he was killed. He was innocent and he was killed by the Harvester!"

"You had a nightmare about the Harvester?"

"IT WAS REAL! I FELT LIKE I WAS IN HIS PEDES!" She coughed hoarsely. "Something is wrong with me."

"...I may be just a medic, but I think you need to calm down and rest for a bit."

She looked up, tears in her eyes. "I'm _not going back to sleep._ " Her eyes were bloodshot, her pupils abridged. Ratchet had seen this look in too many times to count in the faces of his fellow Autobots. Why would this 16 year old human be reacting this way to a...nightmare?

"Rest doesn't always equal sleep. Just take it easy, the others will be back soon." He looked at the computer. "Oh slag." There were two red dots, and the green dots were scurrying around the map. He relayed his comm again. "Optimus, are you alright?"

No answer.

"Optimus, do you copy? Frag."

Mar just hugged herself and started to cry. Her shirt was covered in vomit. She felt...indecent, doing this, but it was disgusting. She took off the shirt and threw it to the side. Ratchet paid no mind, his attention on the computer.

The one day she decided not to bring a joint into the base. She could really use one right about now. She was tired from all the screaming and puking, but she didn't want to have any more nightmares. She stood up, and searched for a first aid kit to bandage her hands with. After doing so she was intending to walk and stay awake, but found herself leaning against the cube of Energon as sleep overtook her. This dream was very pleasant compared to the last one.

_She was face-to-helm with Solus Prime._

_Mar could not speak, she could only watch as the Prime studied her. Her lips moved, but Mar heard nothing. Her face was delicate, but also incredibly grizzled at the same time. Her optics had clearly seen too many things._

_She reached a servo down, taking a small string of Mars hair and pulling it through. Her touch was gentle, but her appearance said otherwise. She continued to play with her hair, as it seemed to fascinate her. Mar couldn't object, she couldn't do anything._

_Solus looked at her and smiled, mouthing something. Her lips moved a little too fast for Mar to understand, but she figured out one word:_

"Waiting".

As Mar slept, Ratchet listening to the others about what happened. Miko was caught by security guards and waiting for Fowler to release her. Meanwhile, Starscream had gotten ahold of the Harvester. He sighed and glanced at Mar, who was still sleeping. Ratchet had moved her to the couch, seeing that her drooling on an Energon cube was dangerous and rather unsanitary. He even cleaned up her mess as well, as not to disturb the others when they got back from the mission.

(I mean, Ratchet, uh, didn't have much else to do anyway.)

"Mar, wake up." Raf rustled Mar's sleeping form. Her bandaged hands were now a bit soiled with blood, and she was still without a shirt. Raf was worried about her injuries, wondering if she slipped or something. Ratchet was busy talking, so he’d ask when she woke up.

Raf didn't seem to care about her indecency, at least until Jack came walking up the stairs. He tore off his layered sweater and draped it over his sister, who mumbled something and shifted in her sleep.

"Raf, whe-" Jack saw Mar. "Oh."

"I just found her here. No, I don't know why she doesn't have her shirt." Raf said, standing in front of her protectively.

"Probably just needed to rest. The whole Harvester thing really freaked her out." Jack sat on the coffee table and noticed her hands. "I just hope she's okay. I wonder why she reacted that way though."

"Waiting..." Mar said sleepily, and turned over. "Why..."

"Ratchet, I heard commotion over the comm-links while we were out. Did something happen?" Optimus asked his friend.

"I didn't talk about it during the mission because I didn't want to distract you from your goal, but it is rather important." Ratchet said. Raf perked up.

"What happened to her hands? I'm really worried."

Ratchet gave a deep sigh through his vents. "She had a rather disturbing nightmare, about the Harvester. She said she saw someone being affected by it's usage. She was incredibly disturbed, and even purged a couple of times."

The others shifted uncomfortably upon hearing this.

"She did hurt herself in her panic, but it was nothing too serious Rafael." Ratchet assured the young boy. "It's just...this reaction makes no sense." He put a servo to his helm, exhausted. "I suggest she should be getting home. We need to worry about Starscream, anyway."

"He has it, doesn't he?"

Mar was up and listening intently, sweat beading on her face. "The Harvester."

Optimus was hesitant to answer in fear of how she may react. He simply gave her a look of concern.

"I'm sorry for the trouble I caused...Bee, can we...can you take us home?"

Bumblebee drove the siblings home. The entire way, Mar looked pale and sickly. She didn't say a word, and Bumblebee kept buzzing to Raf.

"No Bee, I don't know why. ... I think she could use some rest, that's all. We can figure this out tomorrow, and get Miko back from the authorities."

Mar almost chuckled upon hearing that. Typical Miko. It didn't make her feel any better though. The puke-stained shirt she now wore didn't help. She felt...cloudy, in the head.

...

She couldn't remember anything between the discovery of some golden orb and waking up in her own bed. Mar rubbed her eyes. She must have slept real heavily. Probably fell and knocked her head on something. It explained the hands. She reached over to her nightstand and grabbed her phone, looking at the time. It was 9:30.

Damn.

There was also a message from Raf.

_Hey, we thought you could use some rest after yesterday, so I talked w/ Mom and convinced her to call you in sick at school. Bee and I are at the Base RN. Just call us if you wanna come by, alright?_

_\- Raf_

Double damn.

Mar threw the phone onto her bed and put her pillow over her head, groaning. She kicked her pajama shorts off, put on normal clothes, and quietly called Bee. Thankful her mother was at work, Mar left the house with a small note stating she was out for a walk to clear her head. The Urbana 500 pulled up, and bleeped something. Raf wasn't inside.

"Is Raf back at Base? One bleep for yes, two for no."

One bleep.

"Thanks, 'Bee." Mar got in the drivers' seat, admiring the console of the vehicle. Bumblebee didn't say a word, although a couple odd sounds escaped his speakers. He sounded...rather worried. Bumblebee pulled into the Base. Mar got out, and he transformed. Suddenly, he leaned down and started petting Mar with a few digits comfortingly. "Hey, hey, stop that, what..."

She noticed everyone was staring at her. Jack ran over, a concerned expression decorating his face. He gave her a quick hug, and Raf was at her side.

Mar shuffled a bit. "Are, are you guys okay?"

"That's what we should be asking you." Arcee crossed her arms. "... _Are_ you feeling alright?"

"...Yeah? Why would you ask that?"

Uncomfortable looks were exchanged. "Don't you remember? Ratchet said you had a big-freak out yesterday." Bulkhead told her.

"What?"

"About the...I don't wanna say it, the orb thing."

"What orb thing? Bulkhead, I'm getting really weirded out right now."

"Oh for crying out loud...the Harvester!" Ratchet blurted out, making everyone jump.

Mar titled her head to the side. "Hmm?"

"Har-vest-er. The ancient relic you were so afraid of because Primus knows why?"

Mar shrugged. "I'm sorry, is this a prank? I don't remember any of that..." The moment the words left her mouth, an image of Solus Prime appeared behind her eyelids, making her blink in shock. "I really...don't."

"Should we tell her?"

Optimus furrowed his brows. "I'm not sure, Bulkhead."

"I'm not for keeping secrets." Ratchet sighed. "Besides, I was there." He looked at her, his blue eyes boring deep into her own. "You had a massive panic attack yesterday when we were trying to take hold of the Harvester artifact. To be honest, you actually had me worried."

"I don't remember that." Mar said simply. "I'm sorry. Did I cause any trouble?"

"Not for our mission, no." Optimus said.

"Good." Mar smiled slightly. "I was worried I actually-"

"But you did put yourself at risk. That is just as important as any of our missions." The Prime added.

Mar went silent and nodded. Optimus' aura was leaving her with maddening guilt.

"Good news is I destroyed it!" Bulkhead cried out happily. "It was awesome!" Mar looked up and smiled at the big guy in attempted appreciation.


	20. Poetic

Ever since the experience she couldn't remember, Mar felt that her relationship with the Autobots had changed. Not in a bad way, not at all, but rather...they all seemed to feel more inclined to be there for her. She appreciated their concern, she really did, but it was hard to accept their get-wells from an event she didn't even know happened.

She continued to have endless dreams of stars and nebulas, as she lifted in the vastness of space in a body she was sure wasn't hers. Every time she woke up, she had an existential crisis. She began to accompany Optimus on his patrols to cope (and she was grateful he even let her).

She felt at peace when she was with Optimus. Maybe it was his demeanor? Or something else she didn't yet understand? It was like a voice inside of her began to lull Mar in a sense of security. It wasn't like it was wrong. His seats were rather comfy, and he would even play the radio if she wanted.

Thoughts would swim in her head as she tried to remember what happened, to get even the tiniest glimpse of her panic about this "harvester". This time, Mar had been thinking so hard about it her head began to hurt.

"Is something wrong?" Optimus asked her, sensing her irritation.

"What? No, I'm fine. I just wish I could remember what happened." Mar admitted to him.

"You're under no obligation to. Personally, I wouldn't mind forgetting something as upsetting as that." He mused. Mar wasn't entirely sure, but Optimus seemed to be more open around her. Maybe he felt the same sense of security she did?

Which is odd, since she's a small squishy human that isn't helpful in situations other than scrappers or broken neck cables.

 _...Eh, I'm not complaining._ Mar thought to herself.

With little activity going around, Optimus decided it was best to head home. The sun was starting to move towards the desert's horizon, and he'd rather have her be home before dark. The Prime was humble, but he had to admit it; he _really_ enjoyed having the humans around. It brought a sense of youth he had not felt in many eons. Seeing the children look up to him, well, it made him feel proud.

Especially Mar, for whatever reason. Her ferocity combined with her familial love was something he admired. And of course, that boy Jack. He reminded him too much of himself. A simple schoolboy, but with a big heart and potential for the future.

Mar chuckled to herself. They had just passed a rock that looked exactly like a strip of bacon.

"What is it?" Optimus inquired.

Mar snickered. "It's nothing, I just remembered what my dad used to say to me when I was younger. He'd always greet me in the mornings with 'What's shaken' bacon?', and I'd say 'Nothin' much, double dutch'."

Optimus let out a small huff of approval. "Your father sound very optimistic."

They returned to base and found Bumblebee and Bulkhead standing around the television, where Raf was trying to wire something up to it. He saw Mar, and waved to her. "I could use her mechanical expertise over here!"

Mar politely bid Optimus goodbye and went to help her brother. He was trying to hook up a new console to the television, but was stumped on how to properly activate the HDMI. Mar untwisted a few cables, plugged a couple more in, and it was online.

"So, what are you gonna play?" She asked over the cheering of the others.

"Combat Evolved." Raf said with a grin. "My friend gave me his old copy and the console."

Mar decided that ignorance was bliss and asked him if it was co-op. Raf handed her a controller and nodded. "You can play Landon, I'll be Joan."

The group watched in earnest as the cutscene played, aliens suddenly attacking the ship and the waking of the space warriors for battle. Bulkhead kept yelling for them to just jump in and throw a few grenades, while Miko pointed to all the cool weapons they could loot from the enemy.

That's when Jack walked up. "Hey, Raf? Is there any way I could borrow Bumblebee for an hour?" The Urbana 500 perked up and began nodding enthusiastically, like he and Jack had this secret thing going on.

Raf's character died, and he turned to Jack with visible irritation. "Jack, you know racing is against the rules."

"I'm sorry, what is going on?" Mar paused the game. "Jack?"

"You didn't hear?" Miko looked at Mar with disbelief. "Everyone at school has been blabbering about it all day!"

"You know I like to stay in my own world." Mar explained.

"Jack did a street race against Vince with Arcee and won!"

Mar blinked. "He _what_?" She knew about street racing, and also about how illegal it was. Jack didn't seem the type. Neither did Arcee.

"What if Optimus finds out?" Raf protested.

"But Raf, he has to get the girl." Miko pleaded Jack's case. "And beat the bully?"

"Well..." Raf rubbed the back of his neck. Mar didn't feel inclined to say anything, since she was breaking the law three days a week herself. Hypocrisy was something she never admired. The tired teen just looked down at her controller and sighed.

"Come on, Raf, just this once?" Jack made a one sign with his hand.

"Alright. But if you end up getting arrested, I'm not gonna be your defense." Raf said firmly. Jack nodded.

"Fair enough." He and Bee left, leaving Raf, Miko, Mar, and a rather uncomfortable Bulkhead alone together. She fingered the controller, and then handed it off to Miko, quietly excusing herself.

Mar could feel the joint bouncing around in her pocket, but all thoughts of having it were crushed when Ratchet suddenly greeted her.

"Maria-Alejandra! I've been looking for you." He said.

She looked up it him, wondering if he was being satire. "Yes?"

"I have a...an issue that I can't figure out. I was hoping maybe you might have a solution." He peered down at her. "You do seem bright."

"What's the issue?" Mar asked, her interest peaked. Ratchet beckoned her to follow him to a lab room in the corridors. He unveiled his mysterious "issue".

Mar stopped in her tracks when she recognized the glowing, red cube she cut her finger on that one day.

"I found this in a storage closet. I originally put it away because it was cracked, but then it began doing this." Ratchet explained. "I don't know what has happened to it, and not knowing grinds my gears. It's Energon, but at the same time it isn't. Maybe your human touch can help me figure it out?" His eyes flickered back to the cube, and noticed it was pulsating faster than usual. "Hmm. That's odd."

Mar put a hand to her heart, and realized it was in sync with the cube. As if something else was controlling her body, she began to walk towards it. She could feel her being inside of it, begging to be priced back with her again.

"Ratchet, could you get me a little closer?" She asked.

"Certainly." Said the giddy doctor, hoping there could finally be an answer to this oddity. He put her on the table a yard away from the cube. She didn't know why, or how, but when she looked at the cube her brain told her she was staring in a mirror. She began to get closer.

"Maria, careful." Ratchet warned. "I wouldn't get too close-"

With inhuman speed, she laid her palm onto the crack, the scar on her finger glowing a bright blue, and watched as the Energon in the cube began to filter back into her. She felt whole again, like a sliver of herself had been separated from her ever since she came in contact with this thing. Just as Ratchet pulled her off, every last drop of the blood red Energon was gone.

Only a crystal clear cube of glass remained.


	21. Something All Too New

_Mar was face-to-helm with Solus once again, in a room full of stars. The Prime was many times larger than her, many times larger then even Optimus, but Mar felt no fear seeing her. Her purple plating reflected the nebulas floating by the two of them_

_Solus smiled warmly. "Thank Primus. I was worried you'd never recover this part of yourself again." Her voice was crystal clear, not like the other times she heard her. It was melodic and full of positivity._

_"What?" Mar asked. "What happened?"_

_"When you touched the cube," Solus began, "I intended for it to be a gateway, so you could receive my gift. But an accident occurred. You cut yourself on it just as I tried to give, and a small piece of your mind was torn away and remained in the cube, alongside your blood. I tried to contact you, to tell you sooner, but you was too far away."_

_"What gift?" Mar asked._

_"Link." She said simply. "You had Energon enter your body when you cut yourself. You hold the blood of Primus, and to an extent, the blood of the Primes. Therefore, we can seek you out. Have you not noticed your uncanny ability to tell when Optimus is near?"_

_Mar was quiet, contemplating. Solus was right. But this didn't make any sense. She was a human. Shouldn't the Energon kill her? That's what Ratchet always said._

_"Using the Energon, I'm able to create a link, a bond, between you and us Primes. You are meant for great things, my dear Mar. But be careful. You have many weaknesses now too."_

_"Solus, why me? I can't have this!" Mar said angrily._

_"It will be alright. But it will take some time to adjust." She reassured her. "You...will see in due time. Know there is much more to explain, but for now you need to wake. Your friend is worried."_

...

Ratchet regretted ever speaking to Mar about this when he saw her collapse on the ground.

"Scrap!" He said, and began to shake her body. "Maria! Maria-Alejandra! Can you hear me?!" The empty cube collapsed on the ground like jelly, slowly dissolving. He could see her veins glowing through her skin, and her eyes a soft blue. "Maria, wake up!"

The young girl blinked, and her eye color went back to normal. "Ratchet?" The glow of her veins slowly faded.

"Sweet Solus Prime..." Ratchet sighed wearily. "Are you alright? Do you feel different? What happened?"

"I spoke with Solus Prime." She said. "She said I'm fine."

Ratchet was rendered speechless for a mere moment. "You...perhaps you feel dizzy. That can't be possible. Solus' spark has been gone from this plane of existence for millennia."

"I saw her. She was beautiful." Mar said, sitting up. "She said she gave me some sort of gift, through that. I think...I don't know, so much has happened."

"Primus." Ratchet sat down for a moment, understanding that Mar was serious about this. "I...this is out my league. I don't...where is Optimus when you need him?" As me mumbled away, Mar pawed at her shirt. Her internal clock felt wrong. Ratchet seemed to have the same feeling, because he quickly opened up his scanner and checked the time in Cybertronian minutes. "A full breem? Surely it hasn't been that long." The medic muttered to himself.

"Solus talked about something called a Link. She said I could make bonds with the sparks of the Primes. That includes Optimus!" She realized, and closed her eyes, grunting.

"...What are you doing?" Ratchet asked, weirded out.

"Trying to contact Optimus! If what Solus said was true, then..." Mar cringed for a few seconds longer, and let out a breath. "Nothing."

A green light swung over her body, and Ratchet stared at his scanner's screen in awe. "Fascinating. You show up on my scanner." He said. "But it only works for Cybertronians or Energon." his head began to swim with theories.

"Should we tell the others about this?" Mar asked.

"No. Not yet. We need more information." Ratchet stood. "I don't want to alarm them. Besides, you haven't told me the whole story." He kneeled down in front of her. "Your conversation. What did Solus say?"

Mar told him everything she could remember, which was around 98% of the conversation. She also told him about the time she found the cube, but kept the marijuana out of the picture. Mar didn't know if it would be a good idea to relay that to him, and besides; it's not like it would mess with her, right?

"I see. That makes more sense." Ratchet mumbled. "I think it it best we keep this to ourselves until we can tell Optimus. If anybody knows answers to this, it's going to be him."

Mar nodded.

"Can you stand?"

"Yeah. I said I feel fine. Just...different?" She got to her feet and dusted off her pants. "Like I woke up from a really nice nap." She looked at the CMO, shrugging. 

"Perhaps the event caused a time distortion..." Ratchet mused, then noticed her looking at him. "Right, right, that's good to hear." He helped her down and they went back to the main command center.

"-Was incredibly foolish. Is that understood?" Optimus was saying. The other Autobots were in a line in front of him, looking extremely guilty about something and nodding. "Yes, Optimus" they all said quietly.

Jack was next to them, albeit on the high-rise, and responded with a firm "Yes sir.", staring at the ground.

"Good." Was all Optimus had to say, and he turned to see Ratchet. "Old friend, I believe it's getting to be-"

"Optimus. Something has happened." Ratchet said, motioning to the hallway.

Optimus followed the two of them there. "What is it?" He asked Ratchet, concerned. The medic quietly relayed the situation, from the touching to Mar's claims, leaving even the Prime dumbfounded. He looked down at Mar, unsure how to answer.

Mar began to say something. "I talked with-"

There was what felt like an electronic surge in her body, and Mar felt something bleeding from her nose. She paused, and touched her upper lip. Staring at her own hand, she shivered.

 _It will take some time to adjust,_ Solus had said.

Energon covered her finger, and more drops came splattering onto the floor. The two Autobots above her moved closer, ready to help once she gave the word.

"I think it's going to be a while before I get used to this." She murmured.

"Does it hurt?" Ratchet asked quickly.

"No, I just feel...kinda weird."

Optimus frowned, not entirely convinced by her answer. "Perhaps it is best you stay with us for the night. I'm not sure how your parents will react to this."

"Me? Stay?" Mar let so many thoughts swim through her head. "But what about Raf? How will you convince my mamá I'm home? I-"

"Do not worry." Optimus interrupted her tangent. "We'll take care of everything. For now, be wary of your condition." Mar hugged herself and nodded, Energon still dripping down her face. She trusted them, but she didn't entirely trust herself. Whatever sense that made.

"I have to tell Raf." She said. "I don't want to lie to him."

Currently, Jack and Miko were already heading home, and Raf was waiting for Mar next to Bumblebee. He waved, and she smiled slightly.

Quietly, Mar told him everything she could. She saw his expression change from fear, to awe, to very distraught. "I mean...if the Autobots think it's the best thing for you..."

"I'll be fine. They just don't wanna freak Mamá out." She smiled. "I'm in good hands, literally."

Raf let a small giggle slip. "Okay. I'll cover for you." Mar waved, and watched Bumblebee drive her brother home.


	22. Good Night

Yawning, Mar allowed Ratchet to take a small blood sample from her. Using the very tip of a disinfected blade, he dug a small wound into her skin. Clenching her teeth, Mar allowed her blood to drip out into a large flask.

Well, it seemed large to her. It was actually really small for Cybertronians.

"Well that's odd." Ratchet mumbled, staring at the sample. It was a shade of dark blue, neither red nor the light cyan the Autobots were familiar with. Mar wrapped bandages around her incision, and stretched.

"Can I clock out now?"

"Yes, yes, go nap on the couch. Don't wake us unless it's important." Ratchet said, his eyes never leaving the sample dish he was using. Mar shrugged and walked over to the couch, settling down in it for the night. The lights were still on, which irritated her, but she could live.

"You are welcome to ask for accommodations, Maria." Optimus said just before she closed her eyes. "You are our guest for tonight." Ratchet mumbled something impolite in return.

"No, I don't wanna be a burden." She said happily, waving the offer away.

"You're far from a burden." Optimus told her, but he dropped it anyway out of politeness. "The offer is always open." He started walking away for his daily recharge.

Mar sat on the couch, thinking, and then asked "Uh, would it be alright if you could turn the lights off? At least where I am?"

She could almost hear Optimus smile in relief. "Of course." She heard a faint scuffling, and the room went dark. The only source of light was Ratchet's headlights turning on to accommodate. She stared at the dark ceiling, and felt her eyes slowly close shut.

...

_"So, anything you wanna tell me?" Mar crossed her arms, staring up at the Prime. Solus sighed._

_"Forgive me for being so late. Yes, your body will attempt to reject the Energon. But it physically cannot. You may leak from your orfices, or have convulsions. Perhaps even purge your tanks a few times."_

_Mar grimaced. "And all this for what exactly?"_

_"Link." Solus pointed to her own spark. "You will be closer to us, to Cybertron, than any other human. You serve as the bridge between our species. You represent the future."_

_"Is that all this is?" Mar asked. "Just a symbol for me to hold?"_

_"Far more than that." Solus replied gently. "If you train hard enough, you can bond with other sparks as well. And since your blood is homo sapien as well, you can do the same with your fellow humans. Once you do that, you can give your comrades a multitude of gifts."_

_"Sounds...reasonable?" Mar tried to search for the right word. "How do I really bond? I feel Optimus, I feel him existing and moving, but I don't really feel that 'click' yet."_

_"It's difficult to explain." Solus stared off into the distance. The stars seemed to multiply before them._

_Mar looked around for a moment before responding. "...That's it? That's all you got?"_

_"I'm thinking." Solus said, putting up a hand._

_Mar decided to take this chance to scramble onto her lap, hands running over her metal engravings and beautiful design. In a way, she resembled Arcee. No, the correct term is that Arcee resembled_ her _._

_"Ah, yes." The Prime nodded. "You must bond with them."_

_Mar coughed, staring up at her. Was she actually serious? "Uh...Solus, I asked how to bond, that's not-"_

_"No, no, you misunderstand!" She said, reached down and stroking Mar's hair. "You have to literally bond with them. Share an important moment, something life-changing. Then, and only then will you be able to feel that click."_

_"...How do I do that?"_

_Solus looked at her, with a dead expression, and shrugged. "I don't know."_

...

Mar woke up with a headache and the urge to grab Solus by the shoulders and make her explain everything in perfect detail. Her intent was so powerful, she even saw a faint image of Solus above her, fading into view.

"I'll make you tell me..." Mar muttered angrily.

"Sleep well?" Arcee asked, leaning over her.

"FUCK!" Mar rolled off the couch and crashed into the table, scurrying up to stand and then tripping over the table again. "No, not exactly."

Arcee laughed. "You, uh...you okay?"

"Yeah, f-fine." _Shouldn't she be a bit more concerned? I was bleeding Energon yesterday._ Mar thought, getting to her feet slowly.

"So Ratchet told me you ended up sleeping here for the whole night. Apparently tried to help him with a project and couldn't go the whole night?" Arcee told her.

_Oh, she doesn't know. None of them do, do they?_

Mar shrugged and nodded. "Yeah, stayed the night." There, she didn't exactly lie per say. The femme smiled.

"Well, I'm going on patrol with Jack today. A lesson. I was wondering if you'd wanna come?"

"Uh..." Mar found the idea enticing. But one look from Ratchet across the room made her say no, and make up an excuse. Arcee understood, and she went to pick up Jack. Mar ran a hand through the side of her hair, sighing in annoyance. "Ratchet? Solus said something last night." She proceeded to tell him about her dream.

"Seems legitimate." Ratchet titled his head to the side. "Just be careful, alright? Optimus and I need some more time to review this before we tell the others." He turned away, and Mar was alone again. She dug into her bag and pulled out her sketchbook, finding drawings of what she recognized now as Primes littered alongside sketches of machinery.

She wondered to herself if she could smoke weed, but the others always seemed to have optics on her. Mar sighed for what felt like the millionth time that day and rubbed her temples. A splitting headache had appeared. Or helm-ache, as the Autobots called it.

She wanted to work on her biology studies, and she still had a little more schoolwork to do as well. Mar just felt so horrible she couldn't even lift a foot to get to it. Besides, she left all her textbooks at home.

 _Soon it'll be summer...soon it'll be summer..._ Mar chanted like a mantra. The stress of juggling Autobots and hobbies and weed and school was finally getting to her. Maybe it was the headache. She shifted her gaze and noticed the bruise on her leg from being woken up was turning light blue. That surely wasn't normal.

_Oh my gosh I completely forgot about my job._

It was Sunday, and her shift started at 4:00. Mar wondered if she could still be allowed out of the base for it. She didn't want to skip on it.

"Ratchet, how long am I staying here?" Mar leaned over the high-rise to look at him. "...Ratchet?"

The medic had his entire being focused on a data panel. It's contents comprised of an odd DNA strand with cybernetic enhancements. Of course, Ratchet had no idea what deoxyribonucleic acid was, but what it _did_ resemble was cybernucleic acid. That much he could understand.

"This is your genetic composition." He said quietly.

"My DNA?" Mar bent her neck to see what he was talking about. It looked wrong, nothing like the textbooks.

Ratchet didn't understand what that was, so he just kept going. "Mar, it contains hints of Cybertronian genes." He said. "Your entire genetic structure has changed dramatically, and is still changing bit by bit-look." He pointed to a section of the strand, which was fizzling and slowly recombining.

"Changing?" Mar felt dizzy. She was a mutant? That's all she could comprehend at the moment.

"Now, I don't know much about human biology, but to be clear, it doesn't easily combine with other species genes, correct?" Ratchet turned and saw Mar's face was pale white. "I'll...take that as a no. Perhaps you should lie down."

"Would you even classify me as human anymore?" Mar squeaked in fear.

"...Mmm..." The medic thought for a moment. "You're very much a human, but technically I'd say you're more of a cybertronic hybrid. Whatever Solus did to you, you certainly have a link with us."

"O-oh." Mar put her hands on the railings to steady herself. "I, uh..." She felt sick. Her brain hurt. Everything seemed to sway around her. Mar gave Ratchet a small grin before all the organs inside her began to toss and turn. Her hands flew up to her lips just as a small spray of Energon covered the floor in front of her.


	23. Ventilate-Explain-Recharge

"Easy, easy!" Ratchet barked. The poor girl's body was being racked by convulsions, and she knelt on the floor with her hands clamped tight over her mouth. Energon was spat and dripped, and the floor was decorated with a mixture of red and blue blood.

"The other-" Her words were interrupted by another stream of fluids exiting her tank. 

"Yes, they can know now." Ratchet said, trying to calm her down. His medical training kicked in as he saw the sickly sight before him. "Look at me. Not at the ground. Me. Focus."

Mar looked up, her eyes welling up. Blue tears were running down her cheeks.

"Ventilate. Slowly."

She understood what he meant and began to take deep breaths. A couple times she would go into a coughing fit, but was otherwise calming down.

"Ratchet, what has happened?" Large footsteps signaled the arrival of a very worried Optimus.

"I discovered her condition. She's been, how shall I put it, mutated into a cybertronic hybrid." Ratchet said, his gaze flickering between Mar and Optimus. "Her body hasn't been taking it well."

"Is it possible to scan her?" The worried Prime asked.

"...I can try. Maybe now you can show up on it properly." He told Mar with a hint of curiosity in his voice. She responded with a dirty look, wiping at her bloody face. She closed her eyes as the green light swept over her body. "Well wouldn't you know..." Ratchet breathed.

Optimus laid a hand over the railing near Mar, possibly to comfort her. She eagerly obliged and laid her own palm on his thumb. The headache was starting to dissolve. She smiled gratefully. "How am I doc?"

Ratchet narrowed his eyes for a second upon hearing the nickname. "Your frame is tired, but a little rest should help. Other than that, Mar, you're as healthy as a protoform."

[Hey guys! What's going on?]

A sweet voice speaking in Basic interrupted the three of them. Their heads snapped to the direction of the speaker. A completely innocent Bumblebee had arrived with Raf. Her little brother ran up the steps and hugged her hard. "Mar, what happened?"

Mar chuckled nervously, pulling her jacket off her waist to clean up the mess. "I...uh, well..."

"Bumblebee, there is something we need to discuss. All of the team, in fact." Optimus spoke quietly to the scout, who responded with a few beeps and a tilting of the head. "We would have told you sooner, but we needed to understand what was happening first." Bee nodded in understanding, and seemed to ask what had, in fact, happened. "Once everyone arrives, Ratchet and I will explain."

Bulkhead then drove in, dropping off a happy Miko. He transformed, and the two seemed to be chuckling about something that had happened on the way there. Then they saw the others and an Energon-covered Mar, and slowly came to a stop.

"What happened?" Bulkhead asked. "Why is-"

"We'll explain, we just need everyone here first." Mar said, swallowing thickly. Miko gave her a look on genuine concern.

That's when Arcee pinged for the GroundBridge. Ratchet hurried over and opened it up, allowing a motorcycle carrying a human boy to come streaking in. Jack jumped off and Arcee transformed, gasping.

"Arcee? You okay?" Raf asked.

So much was happening at once. Mar rubbed the back of her brunette head. She hated being in the spotlight like this. She wanted to say it was her fault. She was about to say something like "Arcee should come first", when-

"Yeah. Just had a run-in. Jack is probably the reason we're both here."

"A-all I did was blow up the ship..." He said, embarrassed.

"YOU DID WHAT?!" Miko screeched, making the others cover their ears/audio receptors.

"We are thankful you had a safe return." Optimus said. Arcee and Jack both smiled warmly at the Prime. "But there is something we need to discuss."

"What happened?" Jack asked, walking up the steps to stand with Mar and Raf. Miko followed behind.

"I kinda...uh..." Mar cleared her throat. "I...had a chat."

"Mar has gained a gift from a higher plane of existence." Ratchet elaborated. "She is currently undergoing genetic mutation."

"What?" Bulkhead said, incredibly confused. "What do you mean by that?"

"I am not the only Prime, as you all know." Optimus chimed in. "Although they are no longer with us, that doesn't mean their sparks are completely gone. Somehow, Mar was able to get in contact with them after accidentally receiving Energon into her own self."

Mar shuffled, looking at all of her friends. "I wanted to tell you sooner, but we had no idea what was really happening until today. ...It's why I stayed the night." She said.

There was a few seconds of pure silence in the room, and then many voices began speaking up. Some were asking how long this had been going on, other voices asked why it was her, etc. "Enough!" Optimus interrupted, making the questions stop. "One at a time, please."

Arcee walked up. "The stories used to say the Primes' sparks are in a place called the Realm of the Primes. If that's true, then." She made an odd motion with her servos. "How?"

"She sliced her finger on a cracked cube of Energon. It would stand to reason she received some through the cut." Optimus said.

"I'm not sure about all the mechanics of it," Mar began, "But somebody named Solus Prime was able to use that Energon to talk to me in dreams. She said I could...Link with other sparks." As much as Solus irritated her with her methods, Mar couldn't help but smile upon remembering that beautiful purple plating.

"And to give her that ability, she spliced Maria-Alejandra's genetic code with ours." The CMO said.

"So what happens to Mar now?" Miko asked. She draped some hair behind her ear, looking mournfully at her friend. A silent question crossed her lips: _Why Mar at all?_

"I don't know why it was me." Said the young mechanic, picking up on Miko's thoughts. "But Solus chose me anyway, and now I have both blood and Energon in me. I'm not sure where to go from here."

"You know, it actually explains why you were so freaked out by the Harvester." Raf said, his eyes widening in realization. "If you had Energon running inside of you, then that must have been some sorta instinctive reaction."

Jack and Miko turned to stare at their friend. Mar shrugged slightly. "I didn't ask for this, just so you know."

"What does this Link thing do? Is it like a sparkbond for a human?" Arcee asked, crossing her arms.

"We honestly don't know yet." Ratchet said. "This is still new to us. We have to study it, figure it out. Also, Mar's abilities _cannot_ be revealed to the outside world."

Jack raised his hand. "But we have school tomorrow."

"Exactly." Ratchet's blue eyes bore into his, a sense of unease radiating from him. "I'm counting on all four of you to keep this secret. Although I'd rather her not leave at all." Optimus put a hand on his shoulder, trying to reassure his old friend they were making the right choice.

"Okay!" Miko said, delighted. "We can do this. It's like hiding the Autobots, just a little closer to home." She took Mar's hand into her own, allowing a soft blue blush to creep onto her face. "Right?"

A chorus of mumbles echoed throughout the room.

"Hold on, what's a spark bond?" Mar asked Bulkhead.

The SUV put a finger to his chin, humming. "It's kinda like you and your friend are one and the same. You always know how they are, how they feel. If it's really strong, I've heard they even share emotions and pain."

Mar tapped a finger to the railing, a small ding coming from the metal. "Solus said I have to seriously bond with somebody if the Link is going to work. Maybe you're right Bulk."

He smiled brightly, proud of himself. "See, I'm smart sometimes." Arcee playfully nudged him.

"So you gonna be alright?" The motorcycle asked. Mar made the symbol for "eh, maybe", waving her hand in the air from side to side diagonally.

Jack walked over to the yellow couch and sat down, trying to comprehend all of this. "Do you feel any different?"

"Yeah, actually." Mar said, sitting down next to him. "My body isn't used to this whole thing yet, so it's been making me a little sick. When you guys came, and saw me with all that blue stuff on me-"

"Lemma guess. Puke?" Jack looked at her with a sad expression.

"Yes. Puke."

"How about we go get cleaned up, all of us." Jack turned to Bumblebee. "Hey Bee, you ever tried a carwash?" The Urbana 500 perked up and beeped something curious. A dirt-covered Arcee and a not-so-shiny-anymore Bulkhead also caught Mar's eye.


	24. You're Going to Be Fine

" _I love this._ "

"I heard you the first time." Raf giggled, pouring another bucket of soap over Bee's hood.

" _I love this!_ " Bumblebee said again, sliding in and out of the offlined carwash. " _This is my new favorite thing!_ "

On one side of town, there was an abandoned carwash. The kids decided it would be a nice idea to bring some soap, cloth, and give their guardians a well-deserved cleaning.

"Wish Optimus was here." Jack mused, running the soap cloth over his guardian's leather seat. Arcee responded with a sigh of contentment.

"Somebody had to be back at base just in case something happens." She said. "Too bad. Big guy's missing out."

"This is amazing. I haven't felt this clean in decades." Bulkhead said happily, sitting in the sun as Miko dried him off with a few towels. "Kinda wish Cybertron had these."

"They did, Bulk. Washracks, remember?" Arcee reminded him.

"Yeah, but they weren't as good." Bulkhead said grumpily. Mar smiled at the banter while hosing Arcee's soap off. Bits of soap and glistening drops of water littered her own wet hair and clothing.

" _Everyone, listen up._ " Ratchet's voice came through the comm link. Everyone stopped what they were doing and listened in. " _I've just pinpointed the location of the Decepticon warship. I was experimenting the variable frequency wavelengths when I stumbled upon it._ " Ratchet stated. " _Even still, their ship must be experiencing some kind of electromagnetic breach._ "

"With Megatron gone and the element of surprise, we could cause some serious damage." Arcee murmured slyly. Her engine began to rev.

"Also on the same frequency, an Autobot emergency beacon." Ratchet added. "Optimus and I are going to see it first. The rest of you I will bridge back to base momentarily."

There were a few groans from the group, but everyone got hosed off anyway and went through the swirling vortex into base. Optimus and Ratchet were waiting for them there, making their departure as soon as they were settled.

"The Decepticons can wait. There may be Autobots in distress." Bulkhead said to Arcee. The femme warrior was a tad irritated she couldn't snatch the Con's warship, but she had to agree with her forest-green comrade. "Besides, it's getting late. I'll drive Miko and the Esquivels home."

Bumblebee beeped something.

"Yes, you're in charge until we get back." Bumblebee saluted while bleeping happily. "Come on guys." Arcee smoothly transformed into vehicle mode.

...

Nothing really changed, but for Mar everything seemed different. To her, everyone knew her secrets. She struggled to focus in class, and tried to finish all her homework during lunch. She didn't feel hungry. No matter what her friends did to help ease the worry, she felt like a Decepticon was hovering over the school.

She found herself muttering a prayer, something she wasn't used to doing. " _Dios te salve, María, llena eres de gracia, el Señor es contigo._ " She missed Church the other day, she realized.

Mar was so happy to see Bulkhead waiting for her outside. "Bulk? What're you doing here?"

"Just me today. Hop on." His voice declared a sense of urgency. Mar shrugged, and got inside, the other three were already piled inside.

"What's going on?" Raf asked.

"Something happened on the mission yesterday."

"Did somebody get hurt?!" Miko asked, panicking.

"Yes, but not in battle. I'll explain when we get back to the base, you'll see for yourselves." He talked slowly, trying to extend time itself using his words.

The drive was gloomy, the passengers restless. Mar couldn't shake this feeling of hurting in her heart, and her right eye began to sting. She rubbed at it, but the pain wouldn't go away, Hopefully it was just a little eyelash caught in it.

That wasn't the case.

As she entered the base, she was greeted by a terrible sight-Optimus Prime leader of the Autobots, laying motionless on a medical berth. She rushed onto the high-rise, trying to get a better look. _He wasn't dead, was he? Bulkhead didn't say anything about somebody being dead. Or did he just say that to keep us calm?_

Her heart was pounding so loud she could hear the blood rushing in her ears.

Optimus opened his flickering eyes and glanced upwards, seeing Mar's paled face. The Prime's gaze seemed to soften, somewhat. His right eye was rusted shut, blue vein-like structures jutting out from it. Mar couldn't believe it. She reached out for him automatically, then pulled her hand back.

"What happened?" She asked.

"Cybonic plague." Ratchet answered gravely. "It's only contagious if contact is made with the infected Energon. The virus wiped out millions on Cybertron during the Great War." He leaned on a desk with his servos, sighing heavily. "It was engineered in the Decepticons' biological-warfare program by Megatron himself." Ratchet grit his dentae.

"There has to be a cure, right? Somewhere?" Raf asked hurriedly.

There was a sound like raspy breathing, and Optimus actually answered the question. "No," He coughed raggedly. "Cure." Mar felt hollow inside.

"Optimus please." Ratchet leaned down to whisper softly in his ear finial. "Save your strength."

"Would Megatron create a disease without having a cure?" Jack said. "I mean, what if he caught it by accident? That's what I would do...if I did, that." He added regretfully.

"A valid point. We might be able to access the Decepticon database, since Megatron is out of the picture." Ratchet realized, pointing to the computer. "For the moment, we still have a fix on their warship's location."

"Bumblebee, come with." The motorcycle said, tugging on the scout's arm. "We're gonna make a plan. Then we're gonna bust inside."

"Arcee, quickly." Ratchet said softly, Optimus' form only growing weaker by the second.

Mar couldn't help it. She got back to the ground floor and scrambled near the end of the berth, next to Optimus' foot. She reached up to grab a good hold.

"Be careful, Maria!" Ratchet hissed quietly. "You have Energon coursing through your veins. You're just as susceptible to the disease as he is."

"I know." Mar said, moving onto the berth. "I know." She began to walk up the course of the berth, climbing over Optimus' large servo and shoulder, sitting down next to his ear finial. "It's going to be okay. We're going to find the cure. I'm not leaving you until we do. You'll be fine."

It was difficult to tell, but the Prime seemed to nod at her statement.

"If you need anything, tell me or Ratchet." Mar hung her head. "Just hang on. Please. We're here for you."

It saddened her that something as simple as an illness could bring the strongest warriors to their knees. She trusted Optimus, she saw how he held the others together. Losing him wasn't an option. In fact, the same would go for any member of the team, even Ratchet! Crazy old Ratchet!

Wait...was she starting to see the Autobots as family? 

Mar was fine with that.

She was scared to touch him, in fear of being infected herself, but Mar placed her small hand on his finial in an act of comfort. Her lungs yearned for marijuana, but her family came first.

It was strange, touching an Autobot. Instead of a pulse, it was more of a faint hum. During her biology studies with Ratchet she had gotten more information of what exactly a "spark" was. If they didn't get through this, would she have to watch his own spark chamber slowly dim and be snuffed out?

She wondered, for a moment, if he could feel her own pulse coming from her hand. She doubted it, since she was so small.


	25. You're Going to Be Perfectly Fine

Mar was wanting for Ratchet to say "We found a cure!" or something like that. Instead she sat next to Optimus' large blue helm, watching him drift in and out of recharge. The others just wandered around the base, always watching Optimus. Bulkhead was trying to sit still, and failing. So far, Arcee and Bumblebee had turned up blank.

Biological warfare was a fate nobody deserved. Diseases would come upon a person without notice, but being intentionally infected? It was a whole new level of horrid. Mar muddled with her phone, growing more worried as more blue veins began to appear on his chassis. The rust was starting to cover his cheek.

"Ratchet." A soft voice spoke. Mar got to her feet, Optimus' flickering eyes in full view.

"Yes?" The medic turned. "What can I do?" His faceplates were etched with sorrow, as if his loved one was on their deathbed. Which, in a completely unfair way, was true.

"Were..." He took a moment to ventilate. "You?"

"Infected?" Ratchet asked. Optimus confirmed this with a groan. "No."

Optimus stared at Ratchet for a long time before turning his head back towards the ceiling. He was quickly fast asleep again. Ratchet looked down and bit the corner of his intake.

"Are you alright?" Mar asked. She walked around Optimus' head to get closer to him, careful not to touch him directly.

The vermillion patterned mech scoffed. "I'm not the one you should be worrying about."

"Yet here we are." Mar said stubbornly. "Come on. Tell me what's on your processor."

Ratchet raised an optic ridge, and let out a long, long, long sigh. "Not now."

Mar gave him a look of pity. "Okay, I understand." She nodded respectfully. "I just met him a few weeks ago, but I feel like I should've known him for decades." Mar walked back over to Optimus' left optic, so he could see her if he woke up, and laid down. Her mohawk splayed out behind her, and she stared up at the gray ceiling. "Ratchet?"

"Yes?" He answered deadpan.

"Do you pray to anybody?"

There was a pause, and yet another sigh. "Sometimes."

Mar closed her eyes and begged her God to save the sick Prime. To heal him. To let him be here for them.

...

The world looked faded and grey.

Optimus found himself coming in and out of dreams at a rapid pace. Not that he minded, particularly. Rest did him good in this trying time.

One thought came to his mind, a thought that he hadn't yet acted upon because of how ill he felt. He turned his head to see his beloved Old Friend sitting by the computer, muttering about something.

Optimus' vocal processor had grown raspier since the last time he spoke. He took a breath, trying to say something. The mech turned to look at him for a moment, a painful look on his faceplates.

Optimus couldn't finish the sentence, he just felt too weak.

Instead, the Prime scanned the room, making out small blurs and a large green smudge he was certain was Bulkhead. The blurs, wait. One, two, three...where was the fourth child?

He turned his head and would've jumped if he had the strength. There was Maria, fast asleep in a small ball. The dimming heat radiating from his body seemed to be enough to keep her warm on the cold metal berth. Her tiny form was so fragile. It hurt his spark that he now felt the same way, easily overpowered by something bigger than himself. As a Prime, he felt that he should always be in top form, ready to protect others. Being like this; it felt so wrong. 

But seeing Maria stay true to her words did help a little with the helm-ache. He appreciated it deeply.

"Megatron's alive?!" He barely heard Ratchet say. Optimus tried so say something, but for some reason he felt slow, lumbering. There were other voices he couldn't hear. 

"Megatron?" He finally managed to strain.

Ratchet looked at him briefly. Optimus blinked, and it seemed like time was flowing faster than it should have. His left servo felt numb.

"Ratchet, Optimus' vitals." He faintly heard Bulkhead saying.

...

"I know. Quickly, Bumblebee!" Ratchet said into the comm link. Mar had been jolted awake when she heard a horrible voice, like sharpened digits scraping on chalk. She soon discovered the voice belonged to no other than Megatron himself.

The other kids quickly relayed the situation to her, leaving Mar's mouth agape. She wasn't entirely sure if she ever heard Megatron speak until now, but she was sure she never wanted to hear it again. "Bumblebee went into Megatron's own mind?" The idea wasn't far off. They were machines, after all, therefore their brains weren't as fleshy and susceptible to damage to do this sort of thing.

She could hear a voice resembling Optimus, and the sound of swords clashing. She couldn't see well from where she was, but the glimmer of the screen reflecting on Ratchet's armor gave her enough of an idea. Megatron spent his downtime dreaming of killing his enemy? That was...disturbing, to say the least.

"Bumblebee, hurry!" Bulkhead begged his friend. Mar took one look at Optimus' body. His paint seemed to be peeling. The veins had only grown further, engulfing his entire left arm.

"Optimus? Optimus! Can you hear me?" Mar scurried to his finial, talking into it. "Stay with us. I'm right here, Bumblebee almost has the cure."

"Mmm." Optimus mumbled in response. It was too soft and quiet to give Mar any sense of wellbeing.

"Optimus please. I know you have it in you. Just a little longer. Come on."

This time there was no response.

"Please, no!" Mar ignored Ratchet's warnings and scrambled onto Optimus' chest, feeling around for a pulse. There, in the middle between his windshields, a metallic thumping. Mar raced to it and pressed her hands against it as if she was about to try and pump it back to strength.

"We'll lose Bumblebee and Optimus?!" Ratchet suddenly exclaimed. Mar's head snapped in his direction.

"What?!" She cried out.

"Megatron is hooked up to a life-support. Arcee says it's about to be disconnected, which will kill Megatron and anything inside his mind." Ratchet said. "That includes our scout."

"No way." Mar couldn't lose her guardian. It seemed unfathomable. She felt there was still so much to do with him! "Is there some way to stall them?"

"Wait...hold on." Raf watched the screen closely. "He told Megatron if he lets the plague virus destroy the real Optimus, Megatron will never get the chance to do it himself."

"Seriously?!" Jack stammered. "That...that is twisted."

 _But hell, that might actually work._ Mar realized. _Take the fucking bait Megatron!_

There was a loud ringing sound. Ratchet's optics widened, and he was by the Prime's side in moments. "Optimus, please! Stay with us for a moment longer." The medic begged.

A flickering blue light danced in Optimus' optics. He was completely silent, save for the thumping beneath Mar's hands.

"Ratchet, focus on finding the cure. I'm gonna try and keep him awake." Mar found herself saying. "Maybe my Link can work this time."

Ratchet stared at her, not wanting to take this risk. But at this point, he was willing to trust anything. "Alright. If Bumblebee can get Megatron to show him an image of the cure, I can use it without him having to take it's information at all." He went back over to the computer and began to tell Bumblebee something.

"Stay with me, big guy. Come on." Mar tapped the spot where his spark would be. "We're so close. So close!"

"Bumblebee, I have the cure! Evac NOW!" Ratchet motioned something to Bulkhead, and the big lug rushed to the Groundbridge and pulled the lever on. The vortex swirled to life. 

Mar laughed in relief. "Hear that? He has the cure! He's coming back! You're gonna be fine!"

Optimus' blue biolights were switching between a soft dim and completely offline. He was trying to struggle for survival. The ringing from before just got louder. Mar wasn't sure what it could mean in medspeak, but to Ratchet it was a grim message. "No! No! Not now!" He was there and pushed Mar off the Prime's chest, maybe a little too hard, but she didn't really care. She went up next to his audial, shaking it by the tip.

"Optimus, Bumblebee is here!" She felt some feeling in her throat, and it hurt. Like she was feeling something and trying to hold it down without knowing. In her distress, Mar yanked on his finial hard enough she managed to turn his head slightly towards her. She was met with a single dim, gray eye, staring at her. The other was covered in too much rust to possibly be of use. He blinked, and the light was slowly gone.

"OPTIMUS!" Mar screamed. "I'm here! I didn't go! Just like I promised!" If she had to use guilt to get him to stay, then by gosh she was gonna use it. She shook him, trying to get him to wake. The worst fear of all began to close in on her mind, corrupting it. 

Mar was quiet, her hands almost denting his finial. She bit her lip, and tears began to cloud her vision. He was innocent. Not just somebody, her friend, her confidant. Someone that moved her in ways she didn't understand. Someone she trusted with her life, and somebody had trusted enough to watch over her brother's life.

All sound seemed to go out. She fell to her knees, still clutching his helm. Why now? She felt like their mission just started. How will the Autobots save the Earth now? Megatron's forces would surely overpower them, especially when they are grief-ridden like this.

"Don't go." She sobbed, bringing her forehead to his helm. "I'm not ready. Please, come back."

And just like that, she felt something inside of her burst open like a flower. She was completely motionless, her grip steeling, as she felt something connect with her own soul it seemed.

{ _Maria, what has happened?_ }

{I'm not sure. Please don't go.}

{ _I don't intend to._ }

{Optimus, Bee got the cure. You're gonna be fine.}

{ _Thank you._ }

{For what?}

{ _For not leaving my side._ }

Mar gasped for air, as if she'd been underwater for a while.

Meanwhile, Ratchet weaseled his way through the worried crowd of Autobots. "I have the cure. I might be able to make it in time." Ratchet said. "Thank you, Maria, you've done enough." He pulled her from the berth and sat her on the floor. Raf was there in an instant, hugging her closely.

"That was so brave of you." He said. "It'll be okay. You managed to keep Optimus alive just long enough!"

"I...I did?" She murmured.

Bumblebee knelt down next to her and gave her a thumbs up.

"I...did." For a moment she stared at Bumblebee, then held out her arms. "I'm so happy you came back alright!"

The scout recognized the gesture as a human hug and practically yanked her (and Raf) off the ground, smushing them adorably to his face. The siblings laughed, and then struggled for air in his hold.


	26. You're Not Going to Be Fine

"Easy now..." Ratchet said gently, as Optimus slid off the berth and onto the floor. "Woah!" He caught Optimus' body, leaning his servo across his shoulders. "Steady."

"Sorry, my bad." The Prime apologized. "I have been on there for far too long." The others watched as he took a few steps, finally healthy again. Then they started clapping, celebrating his recovery. Mar could've sworn she saw a heat haze emanating from Optimus' face. 

"Please." He said. "Reserve the hero's welcome for my physician." Ratchet nodded, pleased with himself. "And my scout." Bumblebee glanced at Arcee for a second before his optics swirled around, giving the impression of widening. He pointed to himself with a digit, as everyone else clapped for him.

"All right!" Miko said. "You're really a hero, you know that?" Bumblebee put a servo to the back of his helm and beeped something.

"Don't be humble! Take it in!" Ratchet waved a servo at him. 

The scout paused for a moment, contemplating this, then did a mock bow. The others laughed at his childishness, but continued to clap in favor.

"Now settle down!" Ratchet suddenly barked. "Optimus' systems haven't fully recovered yet. I suggest we all take it slowly."

The group slowly diverged, Arcee heading out on patrol with Bulkhead by her side. Mar looked at Optimus, and an emotion of understanding seemed to emanate between the two of them. She would discuss what had happened after he got some well-deserved rest. In the meantime...

"Hey, Bee?" Mar skipped over to him. "I was wondering if you wanna go for a drive? Just the two of us?"

Bumblebee beeped something happily. He transformed into vehicle mode and opened his door, the driver seat shiny and waiting. Mar climbed inside, the leather of the car hugging her body and the bio lights that could illuminate the arctic on a new moon.

"You two going somewhere?" Raf asked his sister, walking over to her.

"Yeah, a drive. Just thought it'd be a fun idea." Mar smiled. Raf waved at her goodbye, and she closed the door with a metal slam. Bumblebee started up his engine and turned to the exit, amusingly telling Raf that he "better behave himself while they're gone". Raf stared wistfully as his headlights lit up the entrance tunnel.

"Jealous you weren't invited?" Miko teased. Raf shook his head.

"No. I'm glad Mar is finally being independent without me for once." He admitted. "It's a good thing."

She sure was being independent. She wasn't even driving herself, Bee was in charge of that. She put down the window and let the wind flow into her face, the yellow and black car speeding along the highway. "My brother always gets to have fun with you." Mar quipped. "Now it's my turn. Think you can go off-road?" 

He answered with a beep and a sudden swerve, Mar's hands gluing themselves to the edges of the seat. He rolled into the dirt, rocks being pushed out of the way. Happy buzzing noises let her know he was fine. Mar wished she could say the same thing, but the constant jiggling made for a crappy vocal receptor. 

Wait, no, it's vocal _chords_. She has been studying too much with Ratchet lately. 

Anyway, he would make sharp turns at every single rock he could smash into, and there were a lot of rocks. It was hard to see clearly now. Her peripheral vision consisted of too many objects to identify.

Bumblebee stopped just before he hit a cactus, which would've thrown Mar out his front window if she wasn't buckled in. [That off-road enough for ya?] He asked, even though she couldn't answer him. Mar shakily reached out to open the door, and stumbled out onto the desert sand, dizzy.

"Maybe off-roading wasn't the best idea..." Mar mumbled, before puking into the sand. She hadn't eaten anything, so the usual blue Energon rushed out and colored the desert ground blue. Bumblebee looked away, pretending to focus on his servos. He was just glad she chose to get sick on the ground and not on _him_.

Mar got up, wiping her mouth. Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She dug into it, and discovered a message from Miko. She...didn't remember receiving her number, and was a little spooked.

_Bulkhead and I finally made a basketball hoop! Wanna come back and try???_

She smiled. It was 98% likely the real deal.

_sure!_

Her voice was a tad raspy, but she managed to grab Bee's attention. "Bee?" But there was no answer, he was just...staring at his digits, flexing them occasionally. "Bee? Are you okay?" She walked over and tapped his thigh guard.

Bumblebee was shaken out of dreamland and stared at her, buzzing questionably. Mar raised an eyebrow, a tad worried. "Miko wants to know if you wanna play basketball?"

He titled his helm to the side.

"It's a human sport."

Bee nodded, beeping something Mar didn't understand. She'd have to wait for Raf to translate. Bee went slower than usual during the drive back.

How long did they go out? Was Bumblebee really that fast?

Mar tapped the leather seat. For a moment she allowed herself to wonder why they had seats at all on the inside. It wasn't like they had tiny people to transport. Was it just because they scanned an Earth vehicle, or did they have them too on Cybertron?

Bumblebee suddenly stopped in the middle of the road. Mar was jolted forwards, again thanking God for seatbelts. Bee's engine slowly screeched to a mere echo.

"Bumblebee? Are you alright?" Mar asked. They were gonna be in the way of any possible traffic. Mar tried to unhook her seatbelt and get out, but it was jammed shut. "Bee?! Answer me!"

He was completely silent.

"Bumblebee!" Mar frowned and grabbed his wheel with both hands, and stepped on it. _Hard_. Like a bullet, they were suddenly going at a mph Mar wasn't sure existed. She let her foot break away just before they crashed into a rock, the steering wheel refusing to turn. Another screeching halt, and steam was rising from Bumblebee's exhaust pipes and tires.

That's when the airbag went off, slapping into Mar's face like a rubber band. She huffed a bit, then brought down both of her fists into it. "BEE WHAT THE FUCK?!"

He transformed, almost suffocating Mar with the airbag. He opened his chest plates, looking for any sign of his friend. Mar climbed out, blue in the face. She coughed and Bee knelt down. The poor girl crawled out and landed on the ground with a loud smack before he could catch her.

"The fuck Bee?" Mar mumbled, holding her head. Something warm was coming out, that was not good. "If this is your idea of a prank..."

Even though she couldn't understand him, Bumblebee tried to explain himself. [It's not my fault! My systems...uh, they just stopped working! Maybe a roach got into my vents or something?] He waited a moment and then asked, [Are you okay?]

Mar responded with a long whine of pain.

Back at base, Optimus was undergoing Ratchet's usual medical procedure. He shined a headlight into his optic and followed it carefully, tracking every movement. Commands that were previously offline quietly blinked back to life.

"I can officially say that all signs of the plague are gone. You have recovered." Ratchet said with a smile. Optimus attempted to give him a warm grin back, but a sudden thrashing in his tank and an ache in his helm prevented that. He steadied himself on the chair, hands clutching the sides.

"Optimus?" Arcee came over. "Is everything okay?"

"...I'm not sure what that was." The Prime said truthfully. Ratchet ran a full diagnostic over him.

"That's odd...my sensors are picking up tank disfunction and a helm injury, but at the same time it's saying you're fine. And you're completely cured of the plague." His optics darkened. "Unless Megatron tricked-"

"No, Old friend." Optimus stopped him before he could go into a long rant. "I think it's something else."

At that moment, Bumblebee rode back into base, an extremely pissed-off Mar with him. He opened the door sheepishly. Mar swung a leg out, staggering onto the floor. She took a deep breath through her nose, and exhaled violently.

"We are not doing that again."

"What happened?" Jack asked, running over to her.

"Bee and I went off-roading ut when we got back on the highway, he was just...weird!" Bumblebee buzzed sadly in response, stepping back a bit. Mar realized what she said. "I'm sorry, everything just hurts right now."

He nodded, a tad sorrowful. Mar asked if she could go home for the day, and Bulkhead offered to drive her. Mar accepted gratefully. As she clicked the seatbelt in place, the study rumble of his engine started and they were off. The orange-brown of the desert illuminated the Bulk's interior beautifully.

"So, uh..." He attempted to make conversation on the way there. "How was it, off-roading?"

"Bumpy." Mar said. "I think Bee was trying to show off." She sighed and rested her head gently on the cushion of the seat. "I wish I hadn't said those things."

"It's alright, some of us get...mad, sometimes." Bulkhead reassured her. "Anyway, we can try basketball tomorrow, if you want."

"That sounds nice. Thanks." Mar smiled.

Cut to a groggy teen sitting on her bedsheets, nursing her head. In Mar's hand was the second joint of weed she had since she arrived home. With everything that had been going on, she hadn't had a chance to smoke any of her remaining stash.

 _Which reminds me,_ she thought drunkenly, _I should stock up soon. Where the fuck is my dealer?_

The pain began to wash away again, and she sighed with an odd smile. She grabbed her pencil and began to draw in a stoned stupor.


	27. My Dilated Hazel Eyes

Ratchet stared at the contents of Mar's notebook.

While Miko and Mar were helping Bulkhead set up another hoop, Ratchet decided to be a snoop and stare at the journal Mar so desperately cared for. I mean, it was right there, and wide open onto a page. It wasn't like it was stuffed deep in her subspace or anything.

He found her art kind of...odd.

First of all, she had drawn a photo of Optimus' pelvis- _just_ his pelvis-decorated with what looked like tiny stars? Then a small doodle of his face with himself yelling "You're gonna smell of cannabis!" in absolutely horrible handwriting. Then there was another drawing of him, but his vehicular antenna extended up to the top of the page.

Ratchet decided to pretend this never happened and put the book back, closing it up. Maybe he squished it a little bit, maybe he didn't. Then a sudden crushing sound reached his audials and he turned to find Bumblebee clutching a tool in his servo, the grip having completely destroyed it. He gawked for a moment, then began his routine yelling. "I needed that!"

Bumblebee's optics suddenly flourished with bio light, and he stared at the tool. [What?] He asked. [Did I do this?]

"What has gotten into you?" Ratchet quietly led the poor bot away from the others for a talk. Maybe the cortical psychic patch had done something to him he hadn't noticed yet.

[I...I...] The scout stammered. [Ratchet, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-]

"Calm down, you're not in trouble." _Yet._ "Have you been feeling alright? ...In the head?"

Bumblebee was quiet for a moment. [Alright fine, I can't be quiet anymore. I'm...I'm seeing Megatron's face! It's horrible!] He buzzed.

"You're seeing his face?" Ratchet echoed to let Bee know he was being heard. "...Anything else?"

[He talks to me too. Yesterday, with Mar, I was driving, and I saw him, and I hurt her! I didn't mean to, I just couldn't move the way I wanted to!]

That was enough for Ratchet to hear. Bumblebee's mind hadn't gotten away from the experience unharmed. He told Bee he was going to induce stasis for a day or so, and give him some time to rest. "You won't feel a thing. It'll be like a quiet dream." He said, then plugged him in. Bumblebee vented for a moment, then his optics dilated and stopped glowing. The only indication of him being alive was the faint hum of his spark. 

Ratchet then relayed the recent undergoing to the team and children.

"But you said Bee was fine when you checked him over." Raf argued, concern coating his words. 

"Physically, yes, but the experience he endured seems to be having a temporary effect on his psyche." Ratchet explained. "This induced power-down should force Bumblebee's mind to rest and recover."

Raf nodded. Mar put a hand on her brother's shoulder. "I'm sure he'll be alright." She said. "Come on, let's try and make Arcee play sports with us."

They were interrupted by a message received on the computers. Ratchet pressed a key, and fowler's irritated face came up on the screen. Mar sighed. _Here we go._

"Prime!" He greeted Optimus in his usual way. "Spotted any Decepticons wearing hula skirts lately?"

Mar could feel Optimus rolling his optics as his voice dripped with sarcasm. "No, Special Agent Fowler." He paused for a moment to take a deep ventilation. " _Why_?"

"'Cause I was hoping you'd have a lead on the 'cons that busted into the Kauai Naval Observatory." Fowler said. "They took the primary lens from our experimental telescope, the Hoit-Nikogosian."

 _The what's it?_ Arcee mouthed.

"Good news, the lens has a tracking device! Bad news. It's in the arctic." Fowler put a hand to his forehead. "Do me a favor and make sure they aren't building a devastating weapon with it, please." He signed off without another word.

"The arctic? Great." The femme crossed her servos, irritated. "Another chance to freeze our spark plugs off."

"Ah, he sent us a map." Ratchet opened up the file, revealing a scan of the North Pole and a location marked in purple. Bulkhead's optics widened when he saw it.

"That's an ND-7 class. Biggest deposit we found. Too bad its not minable."

That's when it clicked. Mar stepped forward and pointed at the map. "Unless Starscream manages to melt it using the lens from the telescope!" She and Optimus said at the same time. They looked at each other for a moment, confused.

"Great minds think alike!" Miko said, shrugging.

Raf looked wistfully at Bumblebee's slumbering form.

...

Ever since Optimus, Bulkhead, and Arcee bridged to the arctic tundra, Mar had felt colder than usual. She put on her jacket and sat with her brother, who was jabbering about familial events to Bumblebee. She smiled warmly, and began to draw Bee's pedes.

Rafael seemed to light up. He was constantly smiling and gave Mar a nudge when the story involved her. It wasn't long before she slumped against Bumblebee's thigh guard, attempting sleep.

Ratchet prevented her from completely falling asleep though. "Rafael, I'm afraid Bumblebee can't hear you in power-down mode. It's getting late." The medic cocked his helm at the Groundbridge controls. "Why don't I bridge you two home to your family?"

"Because I told Bee I'd stay. He's family, too." Raf said firmly.

Ratchet scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. You're not even the same species!"

Mar wanted to say something, while Raf just shook his head. "That's being _related_. It's not the same thing. Hang on." He felt in his pockets for his phone. "Here. It's a picture of my whole family."

Ratchet bent down to get a better look at it. "Mmm-hmm. It's very nice." He said under his breath, trying to imply that he didn't care.

"It's very large too. Sometimes I can shout and no one hears me." Raf sighed. "Mar's the only one who ever listens. But she's been trying to take care of me her whole life and it's hard for her. Juggling both of our lives." He turned to his sister, her eyes still closed. "What I'm trying to say is, Bumblebee was there for us when we needed him." He explained. "He listens to me when Mar can't, and protects both of us. And I can understand him in return. I'm not sure why, but I do."

Mar smiled to herself. Yeah, Bumblebee is like our older brother. Guess that makes Ratchet the crazy uncle.

"Alright." Ratchet went over to a desk and picked up the tool Bee had accidentally broken earlier. "I'm going to the supply vault to see if I can find parts to repair this. You know what that means?"

"Don't touch anything." Raf said with a mock salute. "And I'll keep an eye on my sister."

Ratchet nodded, satisfied, and left.

Then pistons began to hiss, shaking Bee's chassis and waking Mar up who had _just_ dropped into her slumber. Her shining hazel eyes flew open, and she toppled over onto her brother, making him yelp. "What? What's going on?" She stammered, and looked up. "Bumblebee?"

The mech paid them no mind and began a walk cycle, his optics bright and dull at the same time. He raised a pede into the air, and was about to set it down over where they were sitting, but Mar quickly pulled Raf out of the way before he got squished. Adrenaline was pumping through her veins. 

"Bumblebee, the hell?! You almost stepped on Raf!" She yelled at him. Bumblebee, once again, ignored her and began to set coordinates into the GB systems.

"Bee! What's going on?!" Raf called out to his friend-no, his brother.

But in moments, Bumblebee had disappeared though the swirling vortex, leaving the siblings alone and scared.


	28. Fear and Absolution

"And he just...left." Mar finished. "Something is wrong, that's not him. Bumblebee wouldn't almost crush us when walking!"

Ratchet put a digit to his chin and huffed. "Let me look at the coordinates he put in. Maybe there's a clue there..." He poked at the computer for a moment, and his optics widened. "He's gone to the sight of one of our previous battles."

"With who?" Raf asked.

"Megatron's undead."

And just like that, Mar decided she wasn't equipped for this situation after all.

It's one thing to bring someone back to life from the brink of death. It's another to force a resting person to rise from their grave. When something has died, it stays dead. If it ever comes back, walking and groaning like a baby, something worse is at play. She knew whoever or whatever was in the body wasn't the soul of the person that originally lived. No, it was something else entirely. Something wrong, and monstrous. The thing was, she didn't know what it truly was or where it came from.

That's what terrified Mar. Zombies were not natural.

(And most iterations of zombies being cannibals with gaping wounds did not help.)

She stayed completely still even as Ratchet fired up the Groundbridge to follow Bumblebee. Mar shuffled her sneakers along the metal floor, then piped up. "I'm not sure about this. Sh-shouldn't we call Optimus? Or something?"

"He's currently trying to prevent the northern polar ice cap from melting. We'll have to handle this on our own." The swirling green and violet vortex awaited them, and Mar went pale.

Thankfully, her silent prayers were answered and Bumblebee came walking in before they had a chance to drive through. Ratchet walked up to him and put a servo on his wrist, stopping him. "Bumblebee? Explain yourself! What have you been doing?"

Bumblebee did not answer, but his optics flickered to something purple glowing inside his closed palm. Without breaking optic-contact, Ratchet wrenched it open and let out a horrified gasp. There, ripe for the taking, was a shard of Dark Energon.

Before Ratchet could utter a single word, Bumblebee delivered a punch that sent him flying across the room. He landed next to the ground bridge panel, moaning in pain. "Ratchet!" Mar yelled, and glared at Bee. "Bumblebee, why did you hurt him?"

Bumblebee stared at her, empty. Soulless. Mar stiffened.

"Bee, this isn't you!" Raf said, stepping forward onto the railing, climbing just a bit to get closer to his friend. "Something is making you do this! You gotta fight it!"

Bumblebee ignored his pleas and knocked Raf away with a simple swipe of a digit. The boy tumbled to the ground, holding his chest. All the air had been knocked out of him, and a good bruise would probably form soon. "Bee!" He cried out.

Every logical thought Mar had was thrown out of the window, and her big sister instincts kicked in. She climbed over the railing and launched herself at Bee's armor, gripping the spaces between with her fingers. She climbed up, and straddled his helm with her hands, her feet barely fitting between his plating for grip.

"GET OUT OF HIS HEAD!" She screamed. "GET OUT! NOBODY HURTS MY BROTHER! THAT GOES FOR BEE TOO!" She shook his faceplates. "GET THE FUCK OUT OF-"

A servo wrapped around her body. Every breath of air, every scrap of oxygen was quite literally squeezed from her system. Tunnel vision invaded her sight, and then she felt her organs waver in the air like gravity was gone. With a sickening sound, she hit the floor, and Bumblebee ran off through the ground bridge.

No, she didn't hit the floor...she landed on Ratchet's chest plate. She could feel his spark humming right below her. It took her body a moment to remember how to breathe, and she was sucking air in like a whale to krill. She felt a digit press gently against her back, and slight shifting in the chassis beneath her.

"Are you alright?" Ratchet asked.

"I..." Mar's eyes widened and she looked up to see her brother waving at her. He had an arm around his chest, and a pale face, though, which did not help her concerns.

"It only hurts a little bit. I'll be okay!" He yelled down.

Mar nodded. "I'm fine." She said, her voice a tad hoarse. To be honest, she wasn't sure wether she was being truthful or not, but she didn't have the time to worry about that right now. Bumblebee needed them. The _real_ Bumblebee.

"Then come on. We're going to get to the bottom of this." Ratchet held out a servo, allowing both Mar and Raf to climb onto. "We know Bumblebee plans to do something concerning the Dark Energon. But the only one who knew how to utilize it was Megatron." Mar could see the thousands of theories run through ratchet's mind, being so close to his faceplates. "That's it. Only Megatron knew. Of course!"

Raf caught on quickly. "Bumblebee saw into Megatron's memories?" He asked.

"No...I fear it's much worse than that." Ratchet admitted slowly. "Megatron is occupying Bumblebee's mind."

Raf stammered. "Wait, what?!"

"Are we talking possession?!" Mar asked, panicking.

Ratchet didn't answer them. His mind was on a tangent leaking out through his intake. "How could I have been such a fool? The cortical psychic patch acted a two-way conduit. When Bumblebee returned to his own mind, Megatron followed. And now Bumblebee-" Ratchet paused to correct himself. "-Megatron, has bridged to nearly the same coordinates Optimus used." He put the siblings back onto the high-rise, neither understanding much of what he just said. "Stay here."

"No! Bumblebee needs me." Raf said, then grabbed his sister's hand. "Us." Mar put on a brave face.

Ratchet stood still for a moment, then turned and held out his servo. "Of course he does." He said, his tone gentle. Ratchet quickly transformed into vehicular mode and opened both doors. "Now get in!"

Raf practically dragged Mar down the stairs. She hadn't been in Ratchet's cockpit before. to was rather nice for an ambulance. Warm seats, a siren button, and was that a 200 station radio-

_Focus._

Mar leaned over to her brother as Ratchet started the engine and drove through the ground bridge. "Raf, are you sure you're alright? You flew a good-"

"I said I'm okay." Raf waved his sister's hands off him. "He didn't hit me that hard." The boy paused for a moment, thinking. "...I still think the real Bumblebee is in there. He was holding back."

True, Mar realized. Bumblebee could've hit a lot harder with ease. He didn't need to just flick him away gently like so. She gripped the sides of the seat, trying to breathe. Dark Energon didn't inherently mean zombies. She needed to calm down. Or maybe it was the squeeze from before messing with her lungs.

"The coordinates were encrypted, so I'm not sure where exactly Bumblebee has gone, aside from being near where the other Autobots are." Ratchet quickly explained. When they reached the end of the tunnel, Mar's eyes were met with black, purple, and red bio-lighting. The doors quietly opened, and the two got out. Ratchet transformed, standing protectively over them. "Oh no."

Bumblebee had gone straight into the heart of the warship.


	29. Compartments

Mar was a touchy-feely kind of person. She liked hugs, and snuggling when she could. She especially loved torturing her brother with kisses and tight embraces whenever she could. However, even she had her limits.

One of them was being stuffed into the partially condensed compartment that was Ratchet's chest plate area.

She and Raf were huddled together, biolights illuminating the tiny little room. Mar saw the inner workings of Ratchet's body, the radio included, had been folded up in a way that made for easy transportation in bot mode. It was beautiful in a strange way, and somehow it all _worked_. Every bit was where it should have been, at least to her.

But this left little room for one human, let alone two, to lay comfortably. On the bright side, they were incredibly close to his spark chamber. Mar felt delighted he trusted them enough to be this close to what was basically his soul, and the gentle hum of it helped her not feel so scared. It was something you could fall asleep to.

Ratchet began to whisper to the siblings. "I fear Megatron's mind is dominant, and clearly he came here for one purpose; to use the dark Energon to resurrect his own body."

"No!" Raf argued. "Bumblebee won't let him, like he didn't let Megatron hurt me back at the base."

There was silence, save for the heavy footsteps of Ratchet's pedes. "I hope you're right." Light suddenly poured into the compartment, and Ratchet leaned down to let the siblings climb out and onto the ground. It had been so dark in there the horrible lighting of the warship made Mar squint and blink.

Ratchet put a digit to his mouth, telling them quietly to shut the hell up. He then stood in front of them and, just for precaution, laid a hand out in their direction. If they were shot at, his palm would be the first thing to go. He really did care. In his own, odd way.

They reached a corner and peered around it. Inside was this strange room filled with machinery constantly beeping, and these weird tubes that made Mar shiver. They looked like Soundwave's tentacles. As she followed the line, she wondered how she didn't notice the corpse of Megatron in there sooner.

She jumped and almost made a break for it. The tubes were connected to his chest and forcing him to ventilate. There was black scarring all over his plating and his face was dormant. It felt like he could wake up at any moment and shoot them to bits.

Again, Mar found it difficult to remember if she had seen him before. It didn't change the fact that this was probably one of the worst things she had ever seen in her life. And worse yet, Bumblebee was standing next to the corpse, pressing buttons and initiating preparations for an CPP.

"That's unsettling." Mar swallowed. "What do we do?"

"We stop him." Ratchet moved from his position and crashed into Bumblebee's form. The possessed scout turned in irritation and delivered Ratchet's second punch to the face that day, making him fly a few yards and dent a wall.

"No shit!" Mar yelled. "Raf, come on! We have to help him!"

"How?!"

"Talk to him! Bumblebee knows you best! Probably better than me!" She said. Mar began to run at Bee, screaming a war cry she had only really dreamed of using. "LEEROY JENKINS!"

It actually caught Bumblebee/Megatron off guard long enough for her to ram her shoulder into his thigh before running the other direction. He turned to follow, not interested in her performance.

"BUMBLEBEE! DON'T HURT HER!" Raf screamed. For just a second, Bee turned, and his optics changed from pinpricks of light to wide, sad child-like eyes. "Remember who you are! Remember me! I know you always listen to me, no matter what."

Bumblebee began to whir and chirr, putting shaking servos to his head and hitting the ground with his knees. He fell forward, crouching in a wound soldier's position.

[Raf.]

"It's me." Raf begged, putting his hands on Bumblebee's arm guard.

Bumblebee stared at him for a moment, wistful. Then he raised a hand to slap him away, the voice of Megatron inside of him screaming at him on the inside. Before Raf could be blown away by the force and hit a wall with a surely sickening crunch, Mar pushed him out of the way.

It all happened so fast. She felt like her soul had been punched out of her body. She hit the wall, her head bleeding again, and dropped limply to the floor. She couldn't hear anything, or feel anything. She was as useless as a doll.

Raf screamed. Ratchet snuck up behind Bumblebee and wrapped his digits around the cable keeping Megatron barely alive. He saw the sight, and he felt no anger towards Bumblebee. The presence invading his mind, however...

"Goodbye Megatron." Ratchet's voice was seething with revenge and he yanked the cable harshly out of Megatron's body. There was an obvious gaping hole where it had been, stained ashen black and looking like something had burst out of it at one point.

Bumblebee, or rather Megatron, was not pleased with the treatment of his body, and grabbed Ratchet by the arm and tossed him. He tumbled, falling painfully next to Mar. Bright, white light seemed to open up above them, and Ratchet had to shake his aching helm to return to reality. He got up slowly, glaring at Megatron's corpse.

Wait...

"MAR!" Raf shook his sister wildly. "MAR!" She wasn't answering, but she was breathing and had a pulse. "It's gonna be okay!" Raf told himself, trying to stay calm. "Mar!"

Mar couldn't see anything. It was all black, like a dream. She heard sounds and noises, and...her brother? He was calling out for her. Groaning she tried to get up, coughing. Raf bent down further onto his knees and pulled her into an embrace. She felt so dizzy, the world was swimming, but Raf was _okay_ and that's all that seemed to matter to her at the moment.

Finally, the blackening began to slowly dissipate, revealing a blurry world and one, single figure she could make out. Mar regretted wanting her eyesight back.

Megatron was standing there. His silvery armor gleaming with polished reverence, jutting out painfully into the air. But the rest part? _He was looking at her_. His red optics boring into her soul. He knew she was there.

Mar's heart actually stopped beating for a second, and sweat beaded on her face. Her hands gripped her brother's shoulders as she pulled him closer-not for a hug, but for protection. She didn't know how long she stared at each other. She had a new fear, which was quickly replaced by rage and hatred for what this mech had done.

He raised an optic ridge, as if he could sense her emotions. Then he turned and commanded his legion to make quick work of the two Autobots, acting as if she was nothing more than an ugly stain on the wall. The absolute disregard for her existence made her shiver.

Then this feeling began to rush through her veins. It was like she was sitting in a hot room, which quickly turned to fire and a burning sensations crawled beneath her skin with more pain than a plasma shot from a Decepticon. Mar actually screamed. She expected her skin to start bubbling and peeling, but she was the exact same olive that she usually was. The oncoming pain then stopped, but the feeling took a long time to completely fade.

"Come on!" Ratchet gathered up the two children into his chest plate, and extended a servo to Bumblebee. "You too, scout, let's go."

He buzzed once, and stepped back hesitantly.

"Yes, you are. Now come home, Bumblebee." Ratchet kept his servo held out. Bumblebee gingerly took it, shaking. He was whisked away onto whatever plan Ratchet had for getting out of this ship, which involved them jumping from a hole made in the hall onto the soft, snowy patches of ground below. It was only a couple miles. They should be fine.

Not even the brightness of the snow could shake the dark feeling from Mar's heart.

Megatron had returned.


	30. Knocking of Life's Door

"You don't need to be forgiven, because you did nothing wrong." Optimus had said, trying to alleviate some of the guilt his scout was feeling.

Bumblebee, despite what the other Autobots said, still felt horrible about the situation. He went to pick up the Esquivels, and the moment he saw the twins again he began apologizing profusely in a series of buzzing whimpers. Raf attempted to translate, but he went too fast and could't keep up.

"Bee, I know you think...yeah, I know, Bee..." Raf exhaled, a tad exasperated. "But we don't hold anything against you. Really!"

[If I was stronger-] He began.

"Bumblebee? It's alright!" Mar interrupted, patting his console. "You're totally fine. It's in the past."

Bumblebee ventilated, and muttered something Raf didn't care to translate. Mar sighed, her smile somewhat fading, knowing it would take him some time to forgive himself.

"Why don't we watch some television when we get to base?" Mar suggested. "Nothing too drastic. Right?" She felt her friend perk up at that, his driving going a little quicker. She hoped they could both forget what happened the other day. Those red eyes, they had been occupying her nightmares frequently.

She was also trying to ignore the absolute migraine she still had from being bitch-slapped into a wall.

"Hey, Mar." Miko clapped a hand on her back, making the teen jump a bit. "Think you could help me with a drawing?"

Mar was a little taken aback, but a tiny bit proud that somebody recognized her artistic skills. "Uh, sure. What is it?"

"It's a drawing of OP." She held up a paper with a...well, Mar wanted to be kind...it was...uh...it was Optimus.

"That's a good start?" Mar said in response. "I think your problem is on proportions. Here, let me show you." She sat her down in a chair and took out her sketchbook, flipping to an unused page. "I always start with the head. It's kinda...this shape..."

As the two girls worked, Raf clicked the television on and randomly picked a film. Bumblebee expressed his disinterest in it, so the channel flipping began.

"I had hoped that my growing expertise on the subject would remain purely academic." Ratchet's loud voice interrupted his search through the channels, making him almost drop the remote. "Though faint, this is clearly a Dark Energon signature, and it's moving fast."

"Megatron." Optimus concurred, his blue optics watching the red dot the computer screen was tracking. Mar felt her blood go cold at the mere mention of the warlord's name.

"Where'd he find more of the bad stuff?" Arcee asked, walking up to join the briefing.

"And what's he gonna do with it, recruit a new army of the undead?" Bulkhead added, his tone mocking.

There was a small and excited gasp. "Zombiecons?" Miko perked up in her chair, bumping Mar hard enough to make her draw an unneeded line across the paper. The poor girl had gone completely stiff at the mention of the undead. _Nope. Fuck that shit._

"We cannot rule out the possibility, especially since Megatron seems to be heading to a familiar site." Optimus did something unexpected and _agreed_ with Miko's idea.

 _Nope nope nope nope nope. Talk about something else._ "Oh, I know that site! The place where you and Bee had the battle with the green guy Skyquake, right?" Mar said, trying to focus on anything other than zombies.

The others looked at her, and they seemed...confused. Huh, that was odd.

"You know, the fight where Starscream was trying to make him kill you? Fowler came in with his jet and accidentally gave him his alt mode? The sun was blazing hot and the ground was particularly gritty that day?"

Four-no, make that five pairs of optics still staring at her. Bumblebee buzzed something.

"He asked you how you knew all that." Raf translated.

"...What do you mean? I remember it happening. Clear as day."

"We never told you-" Bulkhead started, but Arcee cut him off.

"Let's worry about that later. Right now we have some metallic aft to kick." She pressed her servos together, digits audibly hissing from hydraulic pressures being released. "That is, if it's what you're planning Optimus." She turned to the blue and red painted mech.

"Megatron has barely emerged from stasis, and it seems he's already making up for lost time." The Prime's thoughts rolled off his glossa. "Bulkhead, Bumblebee, Ratchet, prepare to roll out." 

Ratchet turned from his technology and pointed at himself. "Me?" He asked, a little flabbergasted.

"If we are dealing with Dark Energon, I may well require your expertise." Optimus turned to the blue motorcycle. "Arcee?"

"Bridge operator. Got it." She saluted. Her winglets straightened themselves slightly as she walked to the main lever and put in the coordinates. The team transformed, and began their drive through the portal.

That's when Miko suddenly made a break for it.

She made Mar draw another long line of lead and dropped her own drawing of Optimus, the white paper fluttering onto the grated floor. Her shoes slammed against the ground as she effortlessly attempted to keep up with the strike team.

"Miko!" Jack hissed, trying to grab the back of her shirt but missed by a mile. He quickly got up from the couch and tried to follow, tripping over a side-table during the chase. "Get back here!"

Mar almost snapped her pencil in fury and began to follow as well. "Raf, stay here."

"No way!" The twelve year old said, trailing behind.

It was a considerate distance from the couch to the vortex, but Miko made it seem like a couple steps. In no time the light was swirling around them, Jack trying to coerce Miko from going any further. Mar turned her head, eying the blue femme. Arcee didn't seem to notice, her mind was elsewhere.

She was about to call out for her when Miko kept running. Shit. She sighed in irritation and went with Jack to catch her, Raf inevitably following behind.

"ZOMBIECONS!" The girl shouted excitedly. Mar actually growled and ran faster.

"NO! NO ZOMBIES! GET BACK HERE, FOR THE LOVE OF-"

They emerged in a gulch. Mar felt sick. The very air seemed to reek of something horrid and...dead. There had been death here.

That's strange. Mar recognized this place, but she had never been here. She even knew that rock Miko was currently climbing up on _OH SONUVABITCH_!

Just as the wild child reached the top, staring at the glowing purple mass in the middle of the canyon, Mar scrambled up behind and yanked her arm. "Miko. Leaving. NOW."

"No way! I missed my chance. I am not letting this one up! Now I can finally take some snaps."

"...That's it?!" Mar scoffed. "Risking your life?! Just for some photos?!"

Miko was feeling in her pockets, completely ignoring Mar. "Shit, I left my phone. I'm gonna go get it, you guys stay right here." She began booking it back to the open portal.

"WHAT MAKES YOU THINK?!" Mar bit her tongue hard enough to draw blood. She was going to drag her back into base even if it killed her. Mar stomped towards the vortex, the boys right behind her and honestly terrified of what she was about to do. She didn't care how pretty or cute Miko was to her, she was a bad influence and acted like a complete idiot!

Miko was several yards away from stepping into the ground bridge, when another ground bridge opened up behind them. She turned, with peaked interest. "What?"

Two ground bridges were placed right across from each other, the 'Bots and the children sandwiched between them. "GET INTO THE GROUND BRIDGE! NOW!" Ratchet screamed, and as he did the mech pulled his comrades out of the way. His voice was filled with so much fear. Why? What was wrong?!

"Come on!" Jack took Miko's hand and they ran through. Mar grabbed her brother and followed. Behind her, a sudden flow of green energy began to visualize between the bridges, as if they were feeding off one another. Then there was loud stomping sounds, and an explosion. Mar's entire world was literally rocked, and she felt her brother's fingers leave her own.

She fell, white light obscuring her vision.

The only sound there was was the sound of the bridge portal closing. Then, only silence.


	31. World of Twilight

Mar smelled death.

She brought her head up and off the ground, dirt rushing off her hair in waves. The air was so cold, and everything looked rather bleak. The sky wasn't that gray when she first came out here. Memories began flooding back as she got her bearings ever so slowly.

Raf was okay, he was right there. She took his hand gratefully, and he helped her up. Mar staggered to her feet, wondering what the hell was going on here.

"Did the kids make it through the portal?" Bulkhead asked worriedly, standing up with a loud clank. Mar snapped her head in his direction.

They were right here. Could they not see them? Mar thought with affirmation. Miko began yelling at Bulkhead, trying to catch his attention. "OI! WE'RE RIGHT HERE! We're fine!"

"Arcee, are the children with you?" Optimus pinged his blue and pink comrade. He paid Miko no attention, like she wasn't even there. Mar didn't see him as the kind of gut to give somebody the cold shoulder.

" _Negative. I don't see them!_ " Arcee responded, threatening to emotionally explode in worry.

Bulkhead began walking with the others. Miko had stood rather close to the green SUV, and the tip of his pedi came clamoring in her direction.

"Miko, look out!" Mar screamed.

But Bulkhead's pedes just...phased through her, as if she was some sort of ghostly entity. She stumbled backwards, allowing Jack to catch her. "He went right through you." Jack observed, his mouth slightly agape.

"Are we dead?! I don't wanna be a ghost!" Raf exclaimed. Mar shook her head at the thought. She refused to let that be a possibility. _Remember what they taught you in science. What can you research from here?_

Okay. So they couldn't touch them. Not directly, at least. Mar blinked a few times, the cogs in her head spinning. A hypothesis was in the making. As she thought, she began to mechanically follow the 'Bots, the other three right behind her.

"...Our base, the most likely explanation is a dislocation." Ratchet was saying. "The children may simply have been bridged to an unintended destination."

_But we're here. I don't understand._

They were staring at the previously glowing purple mound. There was only one problem...it was empty.

Empty graves meant only one thing. Mar froze, staring at the hollow dirt. She couldn't even hear Raf's own hypothesis through the ringing in her ears. He was dead. She knew Bumblebee ripped out his own spark chamber. Wait...how did she know that? Why was this place so familiar? Why couldn't she move?!

"Arcee, bridge us back to base." Optimus said, turning around suddenly and walking right through Mar.

While the others scrambled out of the way, Mar stood there. Her body phased through the Prime, his blue paint rippling like water. Mar felt an onslaught of emotions come on her in something she could only describe as a sort of electrical wave.

{FEAR}

{CONCERN}

{PRIORITY}

{SELFLESSNESS}

Those were only a few of the many she could understand. Mar shook her head, slightly dazed. Sighing, she pinched her brow as the other three also walked through her. She could feel some sort of energy emanating from them, but not as strong.

As she kept thinking, she could hear the sound of metal screeching. She looked behind her and saw a purple shadow moving from behind a rock. She backed up a bit, ignoring the sound of the new ground bridge portal opening behind her. The creature revealed itself.

A decaying mech, it's eyes purple and glazed. Oil dripped from it's mouth, and it hissed. It's pistons were rusted over and it's gunmetal gray body moved in a hunched walk. Mar knew who this was. She saw Bumblebee rip out his spark chamber. How could he be here now? What happened? The only explanation was one Mar wasn't willing to accept.

Skyquake roared and lumbered over her, his optics set on Bulkhead's chassis. He reached out with broken claws and only managed to swipe through thin air, Bulkhead's image rippling. Skyquake cocked his helm at this, confused. He stood there, crouched like a gorilla. Like an animal.

Mar's mind finally made sense of the situation, but she still refused to believe it. _This isn't real._ She told herself. _Optimus said it was just a theory._ The gray dirt below her feet shuffled, and the 'Bots disappeared through the portal. They were alone.

"It couldn't touch Bulkhead, or any of them." Miko said quietly. "But...neither can we."

Jack swallowed thickly. "Raf, I'm afraid to ask, but what does that mean for us?"

"We're trapped in the shadow zone with a Decepticon zombie." The boy nodded, readjusting his glasses. "Yeah."

Out of all the things in the world, why _this_?

Skyquake turned around, his chassis creaking and hissing. He bared his dentae. Mar let out an inhuman sound. He groaned right back at her, and took a step forward.

Mar grabbed Raf's wrist wordlessly and began booking it to the other side of the canyon.

"RUN!" Jack began to follow her, Miko not far behind. The sounds coming from his module, it wasn't human or Cybertronian. Mar's heart began to beat faster and faster. This wasn't happening. This wasn't happening. This wasn't happening. THIS WASN'T HAPPENING.

She could feel the gravel crunch beneath her sneakers. With every three steps, Skyquake took one. It would only be a matter of time before she was crushed. Mar just kept going. She ignored the painful cramp in her side, or the fact her brother was yelling about his glasses being lost on the ground. Just keep running, and they would have a sliver of a chance.

Mar eyed a small opening in the rocky walls and began to change directions. Skyquake was much too big to fit in there, and the only way he'd get in would be by destroying the rock around them. This could buy them some time. She yanked Rafael into the crevice with her, and then kept running until she saw a turn, most likely leading back out into the canyon. She stopped suddenly, letting go of her brother and sat down. Okay, now formulate a plan. What plan? Get eaten? She didn't know. Her heart was beating so damn fast it was starting to hurt.

" _Dios te salve, Maria. Llena eres de gracia. El Seńor es contigo._ " Mar began whispering to herself. " _Bendita tú eres entre todas las mujeres,_ " She kept going, crawling into a fetal position. " _Y bendito es el fruto de tu vientre, Jesús._ " As she prayed, Jack and Miko dived next to them as Skyquake roared, trying to dig his large digits into the crevice. " _Santa María, Madre de Dios, ruega por nosotros pecadores, ahora y en la hora de nuestra muerte. Amén._ "

"My glasses are by the rock over there." Raf pointed. "The one Miko climbed up on when she led us here. We have to get them back."

"No. Way too dangerous." Jack said, out of breath.

"Jack, I can't see without my glasses." Raf said firmly. "I need them."

"What are you, ninety?" Miko quipped.

"Don't say anything like that about my brother again." Mar stood up, glaring at her. "In fact, d-don't say anything at all. You're the reason we're stuck in this place with a. Fucking. SPACE ZOMBIE."

Miko wanted to retort, but she knew Mar was right. This was her fault. She had put her friends in danger. "I'm sorry..." She mumbled.

"Sorry? SORRY? 'Sorry' isn't gonna cut it!" Mar barked. "Y-your-!" She struggled to form the right words. The echoing of Skyquake's roars were deafening. "...FAULT! AGH!"

Her greatest fear having come true, Mar just sat down and cried. Miko looked down. As much as it hurt, it was her fault. She had to make up for this, she had to do something. She looked at Raf, rubbing his eyes and attempting to adjust t the blurry atmosphere.

"I'll get your glasses back for you, Raf." Miko said. "I promise."

Skyquake was just now starting to claw at the rock exterior, stepping away the natural defense the crevice gave them. Miko stared longingly at the entrance, sighing. She would have to go around the bend they were sitting at and pray Skyquake wouldn't see her.

Jack's cellphone suddenly rang. He dug in his jean pocket and pulled it out. "I-It's Arcee!" He said happily, flipping it open and answering the call. "Arcee, it's me! Can you hear us?"

There was only static on the other end.

"ARCEE!" Jack yelled. The call went silent, and he cursed, throwing the Nokia on the ground. "Dammit!"

"Gee, imagine that. The fourth dimension has lousy cellphone reception." Miko poked at it with her foot.

"Wait, guys. The phone actually _rang_." Jack picked it back up, a lightbulb going off in his head. "We're getting a signal. Somehow." Realization passed between all four of the kids, even Mar, who looked up cautiously from her little ball.

"Oh! Text me! If my phone's back at the base, maybe they'll see it." Miko said.

They had a chance.


	32. Arms, Legs, the Whole Shebang

As soon as Jack sent the text, a large chunk of rock fell from the crevice entrance. Everyone looked at each other, and Mar was the first to start running. Raf managed to grab her hand in time and ran with her.

As Miko suspected, the bend went around to the other side. Skyquake was so busy with trying to get in he didn't even notice them coming out the back door. The kids just kept going, not even caring if he saw them. Miko clenched her fists and started beelining for the rock.

"I promised I'd get your glasses back!" She said. "So that's what I'm going to do!" A pair of frames glinted on the ground. There was her prize. Just run a little further, and...

Miko skittered to a halt and snatched the glasses from the ground, checking for damage. She saw none and shrugged. "Here you go gramps." She smiled at Raf, handing him his red glasses. He put them back on, sighing in relief. But her smile quickly turned into a frown when she noticed Skyquake gaining on them.

Raf blinked, and saw the zombie clearly again. "Shoot, what do we do?" He asked, his frames fitting nicely on his face once more.

"Run some more!" Jack suggested harshly.

Mar was still running. She hadn't even bothered grabbing Raf this time. Her fear was so big, so strong, she just wanted to get away from that _thing_ and die in peace. She vaulted her body over a strange thing made of silver and cowered behind it. Strange, she fit nicely into it, almost like a glove to a hand-

She turned her head and saw clawed digits. Mar screamed, scuttling backwards. It was an arm, probably belonging to another Decepticon. It looked too lanky to be Skyquake's, and he had both arms anyway.

Her heart was beating faster than she had ever felt. Her chest hurt, and breathing became a chore. For a moment she wondered if this made the Energon in her body have some sort of reaction, and she pushed it away in fear of the unknown. She stared at the beautifully crafted servo, frowning at the metal scrapings. Clearly several mesh wounds. She crawled closer, running a finger over them.

Three loud _clunks_ made Mar look up from her inspection. She peered over the arm and saw her brother and friends on the ground, clearly having smacked into the arm by accident. "Are you?" Mar couldn't finish the sentence, her throat felt too coarse and rough.

"Fine." Jack shook his head. "Is that an...arm?"

"Must have gotten blown in here with the explosion too."

Mar noticed the missile sitting on top of it and jumped backwards. "The arm's...uh, armed." She said, then silently cursed herself for the pun.

"Wait, if we can touch it, then so can the zombie." Miko said, poking at the red weapon seating on top of the servo.

"Skyquake." Mar said. "His name is Skyquake." Don't disrespect the dead, it only made them angrier.

"Okay, we can use this on Skyquake." Jack said. "Somebody help me push this over?"

Mar wanted to run, but this was a chance to fight back. It was hard to resist. She assisted in turning it over and moving it in the right direction.

"Can you...fire this thing, mechanic?" Miko asked.

"I...don't know. I haven't seen this before." She said, tapping it. "It's bio-organic. It doesn't work like a gun. It works like moving an arm, only...ya know." She kicked it a bit. "If I can connect to the neural circuitry..."

She saw Skyquake in the corner of her eye, the thing having caught up with them. She began to shake.

"We have one shot." Jack said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "We need to make it count." Mar swallowed thickly and nodded.

"O-okay." She kept her gaze on Skyquake.

"Don't look at him." Jack said. "Look at me." Mar's eyes snapped towards Jack's blue ones, and she took a deep breath.

"One shot." She echoed.

Mar went to the end of the arm. As she suspected, there was a gaping hole showing all kinds of cords and leaking dim Energon. She reached inside, ignoring the goopy mesh. Finally, her time with Ratchet was paying off. Just find the tendon-

The servo's wrist twitched when she poked at a certain cable. Mar nudged it to her right, and it twitched left. Vice versa. She sighed and got ready to practically crawl inside. "Angle it..."

"Hurry!" Miko yelped. Skyquake was getting closer.

"Hang on! I gotta find the node..." The digits suddenly curled into a fist, and the missile swirled around and locked in place. "I...I don't know what to do next!"

"I saw him do something with his hand." Raf spoke up. "His index finger is jutting out more, see? Maybe its like a trigger?"

What choice did they have? Mar closed her eyes and ducked behind the arm. Jack went up to the digit and started to pull on it towards himself.

_CLICK._

A hot blast of air almost burned the rets of Mar's hair off. The missile went flying, and slammed right into Skyquake's chest and subsequent spark chamber. She wasn't sure if it would kill him, and wasn't counting on it. Mar started running again, this time calling to her friends.

A loud thunk shook the ground. Curious, Mar slowed and craned her neck. Out of the smoke, Mar could see Skyquake had lost his arm from the missile. Eye for an eye, eh? She wisely decided to keep going, quickening her pace.

There was a scuttling. Mar didn't look back. The scuttling grew louder. She sucked in a breath and looked up, and saw a grayish-green...something, flying through the air.

Oh fuck.

She jumped just as it slammed into the ground. If she had been a few inches closer, it would've caught her and trapped her in a cage of silver fingers. She bolted, ignoring a horrible feeling in her legs.

The hand proved to be faster than the body. Mar felt her legs go faster, and she couldn't feel her own pulse anymore. Her body felt tired, and no doubt the others felt the same. Raf was huffing, and Mar intertwined her fingers with his to help him keep up.

As they kept running, a thought began to plague her. For some reason, Mar suddenly knew the arm from before belonged to a very certain somebody named Starscream. She looked down at her oil covered body from rummaging around in there and felt rather sick. Starscream was still alive, he just got away.

How did she know that?

Well, for starters, he was standing right in their path. The glorious silver-colored seeker was standing, armless on one side, and began to say something.

That's when a greenish-blue portal suddenly opened up in front of them. Mar screeched to a halt. "SHIT!" She looked up at Starscream, who couldn't see them, and the portal. The seeker began yelling out something about how Skyquake was his minion, but Mar honestly didn't care. She was too focused on the ground bridge that had opened up for them.

"Is that a way out?!" Raf cried with joy.

"The Autobots got our text!" Miko nodded. "Let's go!" 

"Wait!" Jack said, grabbing her by the shirt. "If we go through...we're gonna end up right under Starscream."

"If we stay, we get attacked by the arm." Mar pointed, her own arm shaking. "I'm going through."

"Hang on...maybe we can use the arm to our advantage!" Raf said. "If we jump in at the right time, it should follow. Maybe it'll attack Starscream!"

"Or we'll have two angry bots on our tails." Jack argued.

"...Do you wanna keep running in circles?" Miko motioned to the valley. Mar noticed it was circle shaped. Had she been going the same way several times, the entire time?

"...Fine. Raf, when do we go through?"

The boy put up five fingers. He began to count down silently with them. Once he got to zero, he yelled "NOW" and the group jumped through. As Jack suspected, they landed right beneath Starscream and had to scrambled between his legs. The astonished seeker did a double take and just stared at them in confusion as they ran.

"What...?" He muttered. "Humans?"

Then a very angry hand came flying out of the portal and hit him in the chest. Starscream, well, screamed, and tried to pry it off. "UNHAND ME!"

Mar looked behind her and laughed for the first time that day. The scene was absolutely ridiculous! But she didn't turn to see where she was running and smacked right into Optimus' leg.

The Prime and the others had entered the scene via a new ground bridge portal. Mar just laid on the ground, staring curiously up at the worried face of her large friend. She chuckled.

"Good timing, am I right?" She tried joking. "But in all seriousness...why are there two of you?"


	33. Busted

Well, one might be wondering how Mar ended up walking through a ground bridge portal to a small costal test city in Maine with Fowler.

It's...a long story, actually.

It all began when Mar hit her head on Optimus' pede. That had been the fifth or fourth time in a week. She had lost count. The poor girl's head injury from BumbleBee still hadn't entirely healed yet. That, coupled with several minor concussions, led to Mar going batshit crazy.

"I never realized how big you all are!" She giggled, staring at the Prime. Optimus responded with a frown, extremely worried about her condition (and the fact it had been caused by his own foot).

"She finally lost it." Ratchet murmured.

"Look, if you're gonna blame anybody, blame me." Miko said, stepping in front of Mar.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that? A couple dozen times?" Jack cupped his ear and leaned in closer. Miko frowned and pushed him away playfully.

"I was being so selfish, and I could have hurt my friends because of that." She glanced at the delirious Mar for a second, then shook her head a little. "If you wanna punish me, bring it." She looked down at the floor.

"Miko, what you endured has been lesson enough. We are just glad you are all safe." Optimus smiled down at the kids.

Miko looked up and smiled.

"Aww, Miko's being really sweet for once!" Mar jumped up and hugged Miko making the two of them stumble a bit, giggling.

"I'm also sorry for making you face zombies. I didn't know you were scared of them."

"S'fine!" Mar said, continuing to laugh. As she did, Mar unwrapped her jacket from her waist. She shook it a bit trying to get it off, and out popped her cannabis joint. It rolled onto the floor, hitting Jack's foot. It looked harmless enough, but Jack knew exactly what he was now staring at. He would have spit out his drink if he had one.

"What is this?" Jack asked, picking up the joint. He looked at Mar, a little worried.

"Uh...I think that's my weed?" Mar laughed.

All three humans stopped what they were doing and stared at her.

"Your _what_?" Jack asked again. Maybe he hit his head too.

"My weed! ...Dammit, I'm not supposed to tell you about that." Mar bit her lip. "Fuuuuuck me."

Then she passed out.

Cue chaos suddenly erupting in the silo.

"I told you I wasn't crazy, I smelled cannabis!" Ratchet muttered triumphantly. The aura of despondence went right over his helm.

"My sister has been doing drugs?!" Raf cried out. He stared at the joint Jack was holding and his face went a pale white. "That...that makes sense. All of it. The times she left, her weird episodes...why?" Raf didn't feel betrayed because she didn't confide in him that she was smoking. He felt doleful because he couldn't see it sooner, couldn't help her. And worse, he did have a feeling of why she was doing it.

"I can totally see it." Miko said.

"You shut up!" Raf said. "Just! Shut up! My sister needs help and all you do is get us stuck in a shadow zone!"

Miko stepped back, hurt by his comment. She looked to the side, her face red. "I said I was sorry." Clearly it would take some time for the wounds to heal.

"Enough!" There was nothing on earth that could get their attention quicker than Optimus Prime's booming baritone. Three pairs of wide eyes stared up at Optimus' faceplate. "Can you explain what has gone wrong here?"

Jack began to stammer, flubbing his words. "We, we have laws. She's too young, it's not good for her, she's gonna get arrested. Gonna have to, have to pay a lot of money."

"She broke a law?"

"...Hell yeah she did." Jack sighed, and held up the joint for all of the Autobots to see. "This is marijuana. She's been smoking it, or planning to smoke it? E-either way, it's illegal. She's going to have to go to a rehab center."

Bumblebee buzzed something hysterically.

"No, she's not going away." Bulkhead replied. "Not on my watch."

"She has to." Raf said dejectedly. "If she doesn't get the help she needs, it could hurt her."

"Should we speak to Agent Fowler?" Arcee quietly asked Ratchet.

The medic was just now taking this all in, trying to equate it to Cybertronian beliefs. Of course, there was high-grade Energon, but you wouldn't get arrested unless you were driving under the influence. He honestly couldn't think of anything else. This explained a lot though.

He answered Arcee's question with a shrug and began to look something up on the computer.

"It stands to reason we should contact the authorities." Optimus stated quietly. "And that means Special Agent Fowler, of course."

"A government agent?!" Miko asked, flabbergasted. "No, she'll go to jail for sure!"

"She won't go to jail, she'll go to rehab!"

"But Fowler's not gonna react great."

"How are the usual authorities gonna react to this?" Jack pointed to Mar who was currently drooling on the floor in a very undignified position.

Miko nodded. "Good point. But I'm not letting her get arrested. I can't. It's the least I can do."

Several hours later, Fowler arrived. Jack went up and quickly explained the situation, praying to God he wouldn't flip out.

To his surprise, Fowler just gave him a nod of understanding. "I'll see to it the paperwork's done. Thank you, Darby."

Fowler asked Optimus to drive them to a police station. Raf tagged along, despite Jack's pleads of worry. When Mar finally woke up, she was face to face with Fowler from across a table. She blinked, then sat up straight, her eyes scanning the room. An officer stood by the doorway, and gave her a small and curt nod.

"I've been informed you're smoking weed." He greeted.

Mar's reaction was a delayed and simply stated "Fuck".

"You are aware that's highly illegal, and you can have a fine up to $500?"

Mar nodded quietly.

"And you're also aware you will need to attend a rehab center for an allowed time, and that this will go on your record?"

Mar nodded again.

"How long has this been going on?"

"...About a month, sir."

"Do you have a dealer?"

"I don't know his name. I leave the money, he leaves the weed. Only accepts quarters for whatever reason."

"I see." Fowler folded his hands. "Mar, I'm afraid I'll have to do a house search, Your parents will know about this."

Mar nodded silently. She was put into a police car and driven home. It was strange, being in a normal car. No longer could she feel the hum of a spark, just the rumbling engine and the smell of smog coming from the exhaust pipe.

Upon hearing the news, Mrs. Esquivel could only look at her daughter not with shame, but with pity. She pulled her daughter into a hug, trying to hold back tears. _If only I had paid more attention,_ she thought.

The police then presented their evidence and were allowed to do a search. The Esquivel family was questioned as well. They found plenty of marijuana in Mar's room, and she was forced to answer many many questions. Almost all of them were "yes".

"Maria-Alejandra Esquivel, you're under arrest for illegal possession of marijuana." An officer, by the name of Jones, addressed the minor cordially. "You owe a $500 dollar fine and you will be seen to a rehab center. And this will be put on your record."

"...But you know, there might be a way to make that last part not so bad." Fowler said, a tiny twinkle in his eye.

Mar looked up, her eyes wet. "And what is that?"

Fowler and Jones shared a knowing look. The special agent sat down on the steps of the Esquivel residence next to her. "There's a town on the cost of Maine. It's got a rehab center currently trying out experimental methods-humane, of course. Listen, I think you were just lost, and I really do want to help. I doubt any kind of prison and a bleeding stamp is gonna help with that."

"Maine?!" Mar stood up on the concrete. "That's halfway across the country!"

"We have ways, don't we?" Fowler eyed the desert mesas. "If not, I can fly you there myself." He took a deep breath, and continued. "Mar, if you attend this test center, I can promise you I'll be there to help you with any jobs or whatever else you may need later in life, via recommendation. Not to mention," He added quietly, "You've helped those 'Bots save the world a few times. I say that can attest as well."

"Why are you doing this?"

"You really want to know?" Fowler chuckled. "That's classified."

Mar grumbled something, but accepted his offer.

Her mother could only hug her and wish her the best, but not before giving her a good talking to. But to be honest, Mrs. Esquivel was a kind woman at heart, and only wanted what was best for her children. She also felt bad that she wasn't there for her and Rafael, and she felt that she could have prevented all this. She helped Mar pack her things, and Fowler asked Ratchet to open a ground bridge portal.

When alerted of the coordinates, the medic began sputtering. Trying to save his poor friend from a vocal processor meltdown, Optimus calmly explained the situation to everyone. The kids were a little irritated that they weren't told earlier, but understood the circumstances in the end; besides, Optimus had been planning to tell them about this sooner or later.

"How long will this take?" Raf asked, the swirling light illuminating his frames. Jack and Miko stood off to the side, giving well-wishes.

Mar sighed, trying to hold back tears. "...It depends, Raf. Two weeks, two months. But I'll be back though." Mar hugged her brother tight. "I promise. Okay?"

"We wish you only the best, Maria." Optimus said. The others waved, a little glum, but happy their human friend was being helped. Mar smiled warmly at them, took a deep breath, picked up her suitcase, and followed Fowler through the portal into the little town of Griffin Rock, Maine.


	34. Griffin Rock, ME

The freaking fish smell. Ugh.

Mar wrinkled her nose at the coast. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. "Agent Fowler, tell me about this town again?"

"It's a test city. Locals do live here, but they experiment with lots of technology and other things within the population. Most of the stuff you'll see here, you can't see anywhere else. At least for now."

Mar nodded, lugging her suitcase behind her. "So these...ambassadors. Only we know about them?"

Optimus had told them there were other Autobots scattered across the galaxy, and a group had arrived on Earth a month ago. They weren't adept for combat, though, and were instead appointed as technical ambassadors for their race in case of an extended stay. Back on Cybertron they had operated as a pacifistic Rescue Team, and previously thought to have been wiped out by Decepticon warrior forces.

Miko was pissed they weren't told sooner. Jack was just...confused about their existence at all. But Mar and Raf understood completely. Why would you need to get these guys caught up in a war? Team Prime was the army, and these four strangers were just civilians. And it's not like it rocked their world there were more living on Earth, they'd already met Wheeljack for goodness' sake.

That being said, Mar still didn't know their identities, but was told she'd "know 'em when she saw 'em".

She felt bad for them. They'd lost their home, and now lived in hiding on a strange planet. Apparently only the police force here did know about them, and Fowler was old friends with the Chief.

Mar was eager to find these Autobots and make new friends. If the rehab center let her, of course.

"And there's our ride." Fowler pointed to a blue and white police car, with well polished sirens. Standing next to it was a man quite a few years Fowler's age. He had graying hair and a tired look about his eyes. And to top it all off, a well-groomed mustache.

The officer turned and smiled when he saw the two of them. "Bill. Good to see you." The two men shared a small reunion. "Been a while."

"Same to you, Charlie." Fowler motioned to Mar next to him. "This is our special guest. Mar, meet Chief Burns."

"Is there a reason our 'special guest' is being accompanied by a government agent?" Burns asked slyly. "...I'm kidding, I know you know. Now come with me, I'll get you to the center." Mar looked at Agent Fowler, and realized this would be the last time she'd see him for a while.

"Will I be allowed to call?"

"That's up to them." He said. "Remember, you can't let anyone else know about them. The people here are as clueless as Jasper's residents."

"Understood, sir." Fowler smiled and nodded, then left for the docks. She watched him get smaller and smaller, then jumped when Chief burns clapped a hand on her back.

"Guess you're coming with me then." He said. "Don't worry, the new center's great! So I hear." He opened up the passenger door for Mar, and she hesitantly stepped inside, throwing her suitcase in the back. She gave a small sigh as she clipped the seatbelt around her, secure and snug.

Burns got inside and started the car-or so it seemed. It really just started moving once he sat down comfortably. Mar wondered if it was one of the experimental devices on the island.

"I think you're going to be one of the first residents." He said, trying to make conversation. 

"Uh...yeah." That explained a lot. She was gonna end up be their guinea pig. Mar tried to remember what Fowler said about "humane" methods.

She already missed the others. Raf, Jack...even Miko. She gripped the front of her shirt, wanting to feel the hum of spark beats again from her Cybertronian friends. It wasn't hard, the car she was in was doing the same thing.

Wait a minute.

She looked at the wheel, and saw that familiar Autobot symbol, this time with special circular glyphs around it. Mar stared at it for a moment, and then noticed Burns was barely touching the wheel. There was no way, but she was! She was sitting in the cockpit of one of the "ambassadors".

Burns saw her expression and gave a faint smile. "I guess you should introduce yourself to our guest, huh Chase?"

"Of course, sir. There is always time for introductions." The car suddenly spoke. It was a rather monotonous voice, but it held weight and perhaps even a little snark. Mar watched the monitor click, and sound waves began to pop up in tune with his speech. "Hello Maria-Alejandra. I am Chase, Chief Burns' partner and personal protector of Griffin Rock. Which means, to an extent, you."

"I...I prefer Mar." It was like meeting the Autobots all over again. She wanted answers. Lots of answers. "What are you equipped with? How old are you? Did you have a different designation on Cybertron?"

"I...uh, well..." Chase wasn't expecting all these questions. What he was expecting was a young girl much like Burns' son, Cody. Someone who asked him what he transformed into and, preferably, how amazing being a law enforcer was. But instead he received fairly personal questions that not even the Chief had ever asked. "I'm not equipped with much. I have a pultron-grade pistol, but I prefer to use that only in situations that require deadly force. I can't say I know my own age, since I had gone into stasis lock due..."

He continued rambling. Mar looked at Burns apologetically. The old officer shrugged.

As soon as they arrived, Mar felt hesitant to open the door and head inside. She turned back to the monitor, which made a small ping.

"I hope we will get to talk again." Chase said happily. "The others often get bored of my stories."

Mar smiled.

She bid Chase goodbye, and was checked in quietly to the rehab center. She didn't see many other residents around. Chief Burns gave one of the clerks a file, and she stared at it wide-eyed before nodding. He then left her in the care of several nurses, who helped her to her room and unpacked her things.

It was a nice room. It had a rather comfy bed, plush pillows, and a window that showed the coastline beautifully. A bookcase full of approved novels hung on a wall, and a record player with classical music sat off to the side. It was a little drab, but it didn't feel like a prison.

"Just for today, Mar, we'll let you settle in. You're free to explore the facility in approved areas. Tomorrow we can discuss your schedule, and contacts." The nurse said, before closing the door.

Mar looked up at the security camera hanging right above it.

She had new clothes on. She felt...cold, without her jacket, which had been confiscated for the time being. Mar hugged herself and began sifting through the records.

These were really old.

Mar put on something about Bach and began to fold her clothes, settling them into the right drawers. She took out her possessions that had been allowed inside:

A new sketchbook.

Her polaroid.

Mar's notes and studies on Cybertron (thanks Fowler).

And a photo of her, Rafael, and the rest of her siblings from a few years ago. Mar smiled, setting it on the nightstand. She sighed, wondering what she was going to do now with her time. She couldn't call, couldn't leave, and still wanted to ask Chase more questions.

A loud buzzing sound made her look up. Outside the window, she saw an orange helicopter flying a little lopsided. 

Well, if this place doesn't kill her first, that is.

She remembered she needed to talk to Optimus about her Link as well. So many things, such little time. Mar sat on the bed and closed her eyes. Maybe if she fell asleep, Solus would give her answers.


	35. Azaleas and Anthuriums

This place was weird, by her standards.

Mar was woken by an alarm clock she didn't remember setting. She sighed. For some reason she hadn't been able to get in contact with Solus last night. She threw her calloused feet over the side of the bed and went to get changed. Since this was technically her first day here, Mar was given a little more flexibility on what to do.

There were only two other people here, young twins that had been involved in a drug outing together. Mar was given a few choices for breakfast, and she ultimately decided on a breakfast roll and an apple. She bit into the juicy fruit, and pulled out a decades-old recorder thingy.

"Log one." She said in-between bites. "Day one. I'm currently eating breakfast. They had a lot of choices." She took another bite. "There's these two guys in hoodies. I'm probably going to do group therapy with them. I know never to judge a book by it's cover, but this time they just feel...off." Another bite. "End log."

She put the recorder away. After she finished her meal, a rather perky woman that would have done well as a grade-school teacher came up and stood next to her, a clipboard in hand. She cupped a hand around her mouth and spoke firmly.

"The Lobster and Technology festival will be coming up this week. You're free to go as long as you're accompanied by an employee." She informed everyone. "We are also testing out the Robotic Guards today, so you can plan to take one of them with you as well. If they work, that is."

Robotic guards? It made Mar homesick.

"Mar? Can we discuss your schedule?" The woman turned to her. Mar slurped down the last few drops of her milk and nodded. "Great. I will need you to answer a few questions first. Come with me please."

Mar was led to a room where they asked her about her drug usage. She kept eying the security cameras the whole time, not feeling comfortable.

"I'd, uh...I'd use it three-to-four times a week."

"I see..." The woman, Kate, Mar believed, wrote something down. "Did you feel any particular emotion that made you want to start smoking?"

"Uh...stress."

This went on for a while. Her proactivity in Jasper was discussed and her social relations. Mar mentioned the Lobster and Technology Festival interested her greatly. Kate smiled at this, and showed her some papers about the Robotic Guards.

Mar's fears were washed away the moment she saw the blueprints. They looked adorable. Powered by experimental anti-gravity magnets, they would sit on your shoulder and accompany you everywhere. In restrooms, their video feed would turn off, but the audio feed would stay on. If any suspicious noises were heard, it would turn back on and alert the authorities.

"I'll take one." Mar said.

"That's wonderful." Kate replied. "So, if you need anything else, or questions, we're always around. We will be starting our first group session at 12, so be sure to be there."

Mar appreciated her words and left to explore.

...

Ratchet sat at his desk, fiddling with an old machine he'd forgotten the name of. He muttered something, and then tossed the biology data pad up to the high-rise out of habit. "Here you go Maria." His optics flickered upwards, and he remembered. "Right."

He wasn't missing her, was he? I mean, of course he was a little concerned. At least the cannabis smell was finally gone. He'd been the most vocal about it. Bulkhead assumed it was a sort of personal human scent, Arcee and Bumblebee didn't care, and Optimus was too kind to say anything.

Bah. Ratchet could care less about wether she was gone. One less annoying human mouth to listen to.

Then again, she was the most quiet of the group. Not to mention she actually took an interest in their culture.

Ratchet furrowed his optic ridges and shook his helm, going back to his work.

...

"Another one?"

Heatwave leaned back against the bunker wall, the concrete brushing up against his red paint. Chase nodded enthusiastically.

"And-you will not believe this-she is rather knowledgeable about our culture!"

"Really." The fire truck replied sarcastically. "Ain't that something."

"You know, I think she's rather fun." Chase said. "And I look forward to running into her again."

"Can't you just go talk to her now?" Blades shrugged. His orange helicopter rotors rose along with his shoulders.

"No, she's in rehabilitation! By law I am not allowed to interfere unless otherwise told to."

"What if we just, you know, go over and ask?" 

"We can't just ask." Heatwave grit his dentae to keep from yelling. "We're supposed to be robots in disguise, remember?" Primus, Blades was so incompetent sometimes. It drove his engine nuts.

"Then I'll ask Dani."

"She doesn't work there. She can't do anything."

"...Chief Burns?"

"I don't think that's in his job qualifications, Blades." Chase said slowly.

"Wait, how many people know about her? If she knows our secret-"

"Heatwave, I'm sure she's trustworthy."

"How can we be sure?!" Blades allowed himself to feed on Heatwave's fear and started panicking. "What if it's a trap?!"

The three began to bicker back and forth about wether to accept her or not. Boulder, on the other servo, sighed and decided to go "patrolling" outside. He needed to water some flowers anyway. To him, Earth life was too fascinating to ignore in favor of a fight.

_Wait, what did "in rehabilitation" mean?_

...

Mar decided she hated group sessions.

Those two boys kept giving her dirty looks the entire time. It was hard for her to say anything with their eyes trained don her so menacingly. She had retreated to the back of the center, a huge overlook made of wood and decorated with straw chairs.

The fish smell stung a little, but it wasn't as bad as before. The gentle lapping of the waves against the sand gave Mar an ease of calm. She just stood there for a moment, content to exist, and continued to admire the area.

To her right was a path that led to the garden.

Mar heard the gravel crunch beneath her feet. There was a rather short hedge line and a gate leading inside. Mar opened it, the creak making her cringe slightly. But wow, the garden was filled with so many pretty flowers and smells.

But the most interesting thing wasn't the plethora of flora; rather, the giant green Autobot watering a freshly planted bush.

His plating was freshly polished, and his build was similar to Bulkhead's, albeit more truck-ish. He looked so happy, pouring water using his own palm as a bucket. He glanced at Mar for a moment, and his orange optics became rigid. A blue film quickly covered them, and he stared at her unblinking.

"Hello, uh, citizen." He stammered in a monotone voice. "Stay safe."

"I know you're one of them." Mar said, pointing up at him. "You're from Cybertron. An ambassador. Right?"

He paused for a moment, and Mar almost swore she heard an audible click as he put everything together. His optics reverted to orange, and he let out a ventilation. "...Oh, _this_ is where you're staying?"

"Uh, hi." Mar waved, still staring at his eyes. It was odd seeing another color besides red and blue. "What's your name?"

"Boulder." He said. "What happened to your helm?"

Mar put a hand to her head and felt her poofy hair. "Oh, this? I'm fine. Just a haircut." She coughed, and tried to change the subject. "It doesn't hurt at all. So, you like plant life?"

"Of course. Cybertron never had this. So many colors, so many shapes. Sometimes I wonder if they can hear me." He mused.

Mar could see why he wasn't fighting in the war. He seemed so young, so naive. She tried her best to keep a smile on her face. He asked her a question, and she asked him one in return. Boulder was incredibly easy to speak to, his soft voice felt like a soothing breeze. He kept asking her how she knew so many Cybertronian terms. Mar explained her friendship with Ratchet.

"The famous war medic? Wow!" Boulder stared down at her. "I'm a little jealous. Wait, does Optimus ever talk to you?"

Before she could answer, a nurse came outside. As soon as Boulder saw her walking around, he reverted into his incognito mode and stared in the woman's direction. Mar tilted her head slightly and turned around. The nurse sighed in relief when she caught sight of her.

"Oh, hey!" Mar said casually. "Just, uh, looking at one of the...uh, robots. He's amazing, isn't he?"

"He sure is. Unfortunately we have a therapy session right now." She held her hand out to Mar. "We gotta get moving."

"How long have I been out here?" Mar asked. She herself didn't know the time. How long was she chatting with Boulder?

"A while. I'm glad you enjoyed yourself though." She glanced up at the robot, and led Mar back to the building for the next session. She was well aware he was more than meets the eye, but she decided now wasn't the best time to be talking about that.


End file.
